Obsession
by Amber Penglass
Summary: Endymion, captured and brainwashed by the Dark Kingdom, is fascinated with the girl he's told took his memories. While Usagi desperately tries to get through to her Mamoru, evil-Endymion is determined to find out why he can't stay away from Sailor Moon.
1. Chapter 1

**_Obsession_**

_Amber Penglass_

**Chapter I**

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**Note:** The events will be taken from both the anime and the manga.

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She had no heart. Of that, she was certain. It was not broken, it was not shattered- it was simply gone. She sat, clutching the pillow, curled around the corner of the table, face buried in her arms. Lengths of newly-silvered hair spilled over her arms, as if imitating the tears that would not come. Because, she reasoned in her deadened mind, people missing their hearts could not cry.

Endymion... Mamoru...

She clutched the pillow tighter.

* * *

"We've got to do something," the newcomer murmured, expression turning to a scowl as she looked away from the girl swathed in frothy silks and gold embroidery. She tucked a strand of her own blonde hair behind her ear with an almost aggressive tug. At her side, a white cat butted her elbow, and she absently scratched at his golden crescent marking.

"I'm afraid there's little we can do, at the moment," the other feline present, a midnight black creature, spoke, looking morosely at the eerily silent girl in the corner. "We're at a stalemate. We have the Crystal, but they have the Prince."

"But he's expendable- she's not." A brunette said with a wince- he tall girl was kneeling at the table with them all, setting down a plate of cookies, forgetting them even as her hands abandoned the oven mitts.

The newcomer shook her head, red bow in her hair rustling against the silken strands. "No, no, he's not! Can't you see? Separating them once nearly destroyed everything." She looked to the princess and winced. "Just like letting them be together almost destroyed everything- did destroy everything as far as some were concerned. We only got a second chance by grace of the Queen."

"So it doesn't matter much what we do as far as they're concerned," Rei's eyes were stormy- the Senshi of Fire did not take defeat lightly. Why she felt defeated, though, she really couldn't say- in her book, the loss of someone they'd never really been sure was an ally shouldn't weigh so heavily against finding the Princess and claiming the Silver Imperium Crystal.

The newcomer, the blonde, pressed her lips together in a tight line. Slowly, as if barely controlling herself, she rose to her feet with silent grace and went to the Princess, their friend. She knelt beside her, reaching out with a gentle hand to stroke the silver hair that flowed around her like water.

"Serenity?" No response. "Usagi?" Slowly, the girl lifted her head, crescent moon mark on her brow gleaming softly in the dim light. Her face was dry, her eyes empty as she blinked at the room. In those cerulean depths, where once here had sparkled hope, life, and the promise of unconditional friendship for all who asked for it, there was now nothing.

"Oh, Usagi-chan..." Ami's hands clasped over her mouth.

"It does matter," Minako said harshly. Serenity put her head back in her arms, and continued to be silent.

* * *

"Endymion..." the voice was velvet against the sharp silence that surrounded him. Velvet, and something...venomous.

"Endymion, my prince...wake up..." As if his eyelids were puppets, they slid open to behold a darkened chamber. High, vaulted ceilings carved out of the inside of what had once been a vast cave now stared down at him, decorated with all manner of snarling creatures and laughing demonic faces. He felt as if he should have a reaction to it- and yet he didn't.

He sat up, feeling the heavy, familiar movement of his armor around him, wondered at how he wasn't sore from sleeping in it. He swung his feet over the edge of the bed he lay on, and stood on shaky legs. He frowned down at his limbs, commanding them to cooperate. Slowly, they did, and he took a careful step into the vast room. The bed was on a platform of sorts, and he stepped down onto a floor so black it seemed to absorb what light the dim torches, adhered here and there to the walls, gave off.

"Who is there?" He demanded, recalling the voice. He was wary, but not overly so. He felt as if he'd been here before. As if this were...home. As if he had power, here.

Thinking it, he raised his hands before him, frowning as he tried to recall...something. These hands... He felt as if they'd been trusted with something precious...something akin to power, but far more sweet.

Then, blue-black flames guttered softly from his fingertips, erasing the memory of sweetness. At the same time, a long, pale, sinuous arm ending in wicked red nails curved over his shoulder and down his chest. He turned, not as uneasy as he should have been about being snuck up on, and took a step back from the woman with flame-red hair.

She grinned at him, showing wicked teeth. Her eyes were catlike, slitted and yellow. Her lips were deep plum, and full. Heavy breasts threatened to spill from a tight amethyst bodice, tight skirt hugging ample hips and a narrow waist, and long, long legs- she was nearly as tall as him. For all her otherworldly appearance, she was absolutely-

"Ravishing," he murmured, appreciating the sight. She was familiar to him... With that, he abruptly realized that everything was familiar, but not remembered. Not even himself. Not even the name she'd called him, 'Endymion.'

"My love," she said, a snake's tongue curling around the words. She advanced, and he held his ground as she sank against him with a sigh far too delicate for what he would have expected of such a woman. "It's been so long."

"Has it?"

She pulled away, reaching up one hand to toy with an ebony lock. "It has. Those vile, impudent girls...they stole you away. My heart, my weakness... They took your memories, dear Endymion. They thought to turn you against me. Are your memories gone, still?" The innocence she portrayed contrasted sharply with the serpentine way she coiled herself around him. And yet, a tugging on his mind-

Trust, complete and absolute. He didn't question where it came from. If he'd made himself look closer, he would have attributed it to unremembered relationships, persevering through the mindwipe. He touched her cheek- cold, smooth as marble. Absolutely flawless.

"I remember enough," he said. The words came out empty and flat, but she sighed at hearing them, nails clawing at his belt, his chestguard, his cloak-clasp at his throat.

"Oh, my prince...mine, all mine..." She leaned into his neck, nipping with sharp teeth and cold tongue at the junction of his neck and shoulder. "Show me you remember me, show me you still love me..."

Something in her words rang a sour note, but it was gone before he could examine it. Without thinking, without really caring, he discarded his cloak, lifting the surprisingly heavy creature into his arms, hardly noticing the blood trickling down his throat where she'd bit him. "Of course, my Queen." She laughed, long and loud, throughout the rest of the night.

* * *

"I'm not coming," Usagi said into the communicator, ignoring the odd looks the other cafe patrons gave the odd girl talking to her watch.

"What do you mean, you're not coming?" Luna blanched. "We need you!"

"You have Minako. You're no worse off than you would have been a week ago." She argued, uncharacteristically logical.

"Usagi, I know you're still upset, but you can't just give up- we need you to come and help us-"

"Look at a room I already know by heart? Remember what happened? You were all there, you can all remember as well as I. I'm not coming, Luna. You can go examine the Starlight Tower without me." She shut the lid of the watch, hating its merry pink enamel and gold filigree. It began beeping again, and she pressed a small button on the side to silence it. Let her call all she wanted- Usagi wasn't changing her mind.

That taken care of, she blinked down at the steaming cup that had been set down in front of her by an amused waiter, who thought a high school girl talking into a novelty toy on her wrist was amusing rather than disturbing.

Coffee.

Black.

She reached for the little dish of sugar packets and miniature cups of cream, absently tearing them open and pouring them in- until she realized there was no more sugar, and the cream and made the coffee lukewarm and nearly overflowing. She sipped it away, not really caring that each swallow was likely causing a new cavity. She sat there a long while, forgetting why she'd originally come. Her schoolbag at her feet remained closed around her homework and research books. The library had been too quiet, had reminded her of... Well, it seemed like a place he would go frequently, even if that was one place she'd never...

She tucked that thought away, instead taking note of the blonde girl who'd seated herself across from Usagi in the window booth, smiling gently. Absently, she looked for signs of cats.

"Artemis stayed with Luna," Minako said, catching the waiter's eye and beckoning. When he'd come and she'd ordered two shakes, and left again, she reached across the table and taken Usagi's wrist, undoing the catch on her communicator-watch and slipping the thing off her hand, then depositing it in her purse. That done, she made a show of doing the same with her own, topaz and blue communicator.

"Talk to me," she said. "I know I haven't been around long, but sometimes that's better than talking to someone you've known and fought beside for...how long have you been fighting, here? A year?"

"Only a few months," Usagi responded without intending to. "Feels longer."

"Yeah, I know the feeling. How did you get started?" Without waiting for an answer, she bubbled on, "Artemis found me. I'm guessing Luna found you? Was a crazy night... Short skirts, flashy powers. I didn't understand half of what was going on. And the dreams! Boy lemme tell you, you're kinda lucky you got most of your memories -well, the ones your gonna get, anyway- all in one fell swoop. Getting them in bits and pieces over the years sucks, it's totally confusing!"

"Yeah, finding out the boy you've had a crush on is also your soulmate from a previous incarnation right as he's being killed and kidnapped right in front of you was a real treat." She sipped the coffee, and winced. Had she really managed to drink half of that sludge?

"Better than not knowing at all, doncha think?" The shakes had arrived. How much the waiter had overheard, neither girl really cared for once. Minako pushed the strawberry and whipped-cream confection in front of her, shoving a long straw through the white fluff as she did so. "Here, this's gotta be better than that junk." She wrinkled her nose at the now-cold coffee cup.

"Yeah," Usagi agreed, pusing the cup away, graspin the straw between her lips and taking a long pull of the thick, cold sweetness, erasing the taste of ruined coffee.

"So, you gonna tell me how you got started?"

She meant how Usagi got started on being Sailor Moon. What she heard, was a question about how she and Mamoru had gotten started.

"We hated each other." She said blandly. "At least..." she hesitated, confusion taking over her features as she looked out the window. How many times had she collided with his chest right in front of this very cafe? A dozen? More? Was that the real reason she'd come here? "At least, I thought we did. Then...things started happening. He'd smile while teasing me, instead of frown. He'd tug on my hair...then twirl it around a finger when he thought I wouldn't see. I'd stop panicking about being late in the morning...because I had compensation on the way. I...I stopped carrying bandages in by schoolbag. Because he'd always catch me- hold me, sometimes, if he thought he had an excuse, if I seemed unsteady for a second too long." She blushed, betraying perhaps those bouts of dizziness hadn't always been true.

Minako smiled. "You started to fall in love."

"I didn't love him." The words came fast, and harsh, like a shield risen just in time to deflect a fatal blow.

Minako's smile saddened. "I said started. It can take awhile."

Usagi's hands tightened on her shake. "It wouldn't have taken us long," she murmured.

Minako sighed. "No, it wouldn't have. History," she mused. "Has a way of repeating itself. No matter how long it takes." She sipped her own shake, which was half gone- Usagi's was mostly melted.

"Minako..." she swallowed. "I don't want to be Sailor Moon anymore, not if we're all going to end up like..." she blinked, eyes suspiciously moist. "Not if we're all going to end up like Kamen." She shook her head. "This is all wrong, Mina. I'm no princess. I thought...I thought finding the Princess would be the end. She'd be powerful, and strong, and calm, and she'd take care of everything, we just had to keep the youma away from her. But...but I'm the princess...even I can't deny it... But I'm not strong, or powerful, and this is far from over." She released the shake, clenching her hands into fists that left crescent marks deep into her palms. "I can't do it, I don't want to fight..." Tears at last spilled over, dripping down her face to land in the melted whipped cream.

Minako got up from her side of the table, coming around to hers, and scooting in beside her. She put an arm around her shoulder, a brace against the torrential storm of tears that forced their way free. Usagi sat, limp, head bowed as the tears she'd been storing up all week at last were let loose. It was silent, but harsh, and when she was done Minako kissed her temple in a sisterly fashion, handing her an embroidered kerchief.

"Then you don't have to," Minako said, softly, stroking her streamers of hair that hung limp, golden again. "We'll take care of it, Princess. Come find me if you want to talk, again." She fished Usagi's communicator- flashing, again- out of her purse and laid it down on the table, leaving a few bills to pay for the shakes -and the coffee, Usagi noted- before leaving as quietly as she'd come.

Usagi was, again, left alone, this time with a shake ruined by tears instead of a coffee ruined by sugar.

It was another hour- near sunset- when at last the waiter politely told her she needed to order something else or spend her evening elsewhere. She blinked, realizing the shakes and coffee cup had been cleared away and the bills Minako had left along with them.

"Have a good night, dear." The hostess at the door said with a wave.

She couldn't be Usagi. Not yet, not fully. It hurt to much, thinking of going back to the way things had been as if nothing had changed, as if that new 'missing person' flier in her dad's newspaper meant nothing to her.

She couldn't be the Princess- she didn't know how. The Princess was useless. The Princess was weak, always had been. She'd sat by while her Senshi defended her, while Endymion defended her, and in the end she'd died, too. Aside from the blood in her veins that gave her the Crystal, the damn princess might as well be a doll.

But...Sailor Moon.

Sailor Moon was a mask, a hiding place. She was useful, or she could be. Now, with the Crystal...

Anger suddenly enveloped her, out of nowhere, swift and as powerful as the tears had been. She turned, pounding her fist into the brick building she was passing, feeling bone and flesh crunch. She yowled in pain, not so angry as to not feel it. But the anger persevered through the pain, the pain fueling it as she cradled her hand. Tears of mingled fury and agony wet her eyes, and she dived into an alley to examine the damage, and where the anger had come from- neither was difficult to decipher.

Anger that their second chance had been stolen, before they'd even known it was a second chance. Anger at herself, for letting things go to shit the first time. Damn useless princess... Anger at the enemy, for daring to show their faces, again. Anger at Mamoru, for making her so mad at him at first, at wasting their time together. Fury at the Generals, fury at the Fates that deemed her to this hellish destiny.

Unrestrained, corrosive anger at herself- for almost giving in.

"Moon, Prism, _Power_!"

The flood of heat and energy that rampaged through her system was like a drug she'd been denying herself. She felt the bones in her hand mend, the hairline fractures a memory. She left her schoolbag where it lay, leaping straight up and grasping a pole that connected the rooftops of the two buildings that made the alley. She flipped herself up, arched forward, curving down around again, looping back up before releasing. She came back down, landing nimbly on one foot on the quivering pole. A feat no human would have been able to perform, she was sure. She stood there, breathing in the wind that swept over the rooftops, cleaner than the breeze that manged to get down to the streets, through the trash. She stayed only a moment, leaping away soon as a child down below spotted her and pointed, eyes bugging, tugging on her mother's shirt.

It was near flying- she'd almost forgotten. The only times they'd ever really let themselves go free, leaping, jumping, wheeling in the air, was when they needed to get somewhere in a hurry, and in that case there was an air of panic- would they get there in time? How many lives would be lost before they could get there? They never did it for fun- too risky.

She didn't care. Let the world know that there was a girl, risking her life, every day, to save the world. Why shouldn't they know?

She reached the Tower before the rest of them. The slight tingle at the back of her neck that let her know when other Senshi were near was absent- but in place of it, there was something else. It made her frown- it wasn't Senshi, but it wasn't youma either.

She half leaped, half climbed the exterior of the tower until she reached that topmost platform, half open to the air and half enclosed by rusting scaffolding. For the most part, fierce winds were allowed to sweep the platform clean of even a spec of dust. The sun was half buried behind the horizon, setting the ocean aflame in shades of gold and reds. She stood on the very edge of the platform, on her tiptoes. Taking a deep, cleansing breath she raised her arms out, tempted to simply let herself fall. She fought the voice in her head that told her_ he_ would catch her, again. He always caught her.

There was that sensation at the back of her neck- not the Senshi tingle or Kamen's spine-tingling caress, but something subtle, something that sank deep into her flesh and...waited. She lowered her arms, frowning. It was familiar. It reminded her of her Kamen-tingle, but it didn't caress so much as it...

She glowered at the glorious sunset, frustrated, urging the Senshi to hurry up. Being left alone with her thoughts was playing tricks on her. She pouted, leaning against a rust-red pillar to her left. She'd hoped being Sailor Moon would distract her, but instead it seemed to be fooling with her imagination. The more she thought on it, the more this new sensation reminded her of him. It was so, so hard to tell herself that she would turn around, and he wouldn't be there.

Against her will, cursing her own weakness, she glanced over her shoulder.

A gasp- a start, sudden vertigo in the pit of her stomach as she fell, arms wheeling as she forgot all sense of her Senshi powers, for a moment just a startled girl falling back over the edge, a wordless cry-

Then the black-gloved hand behind her waist, pulling her sharply back up, hard against a metal-covered chest. Only that arm around her waist kept her from plummeting- her toes barely scraped the barest edge of the platform.

Her lungs burned from lack of air, either because she didn't dare take a breath or because his arm was so cruelly tight. Her head spun, from the brief vertigo or the stormy inkiness of his eyes, so full of mixed loathing and fascination. Her chest ached- from the heart that suddenly beat back to life, or was it because of the hard steel embellishments adhered to his breastplate, pressing into her breastbone with bruising pressure?

"Mamoru..."

"Hello, Sailor Moon." He didn't seem to hear her, tilting his head as he regarded what he'd caught. "To think, I'd anticipated a long, drawn out series of carefully constructed scenarios to lure you here...and here you are, waiting." His arm tightened, and she fought to breathe.

"Mamoru, you're hurting me-"

"Am I?" The arm tightened even more, and she whimpered. Something was wrong. This wasn't Mamoru...and yet... It was. The face, the voice, the hair, the scent...that tingle, it made sense now. It wasn't Kamen's, but Mamoru's- corrupted, somehow, but his. He dipped his head down til his nose was nearly brushing hers.

The eyes. The eyes were wrong- black, when they should have been blue.

Her brief joy at seeming him alive was crushed- something was so dearly wrong, something perhaps worse than death.

"I think," he said slowly, his hand at her side grasping her hip with not quite enough pressure to bruise, but enough to send a jolt of sensation down her leg. "I am going to enjoy this."

Then he was gone, in a swirl of black petals and putrid magic, and with a shriek Sailor Moon fell back, arms flailing as she screamed. She had no idea if such a fall would kill her, transformed as she was...but it was certainly going to hurt-

"_Golden Lasso_!"

The narrow, glowing cord that whipped around her wrist yanked her to an agonizing halt, as the sound of wrenched cartilage and tortured muscle made her see spots.

"Get her up, quick!"

Each jerk that pulled her higher made her gasp, nausea rising- she fought to swallow the bile that rose. When at last she was hauled over the edge of the platform, whimpering, tears of pain wetting her cheeks, she saw her rescuers- the Senshi stood, two kneeling two standing, in an arch around where she crawled over the edge.

"Careful! That shoulder's dislocated." Mercury knelt beside her, now belt held in a sitting position by Rei. "This is going to hurt, highness."

"Don't call me-" a screech loud enough to wake the dead interrupted her own words as Mercury deftly gripped the injured limb, and _pulled_. When released, the shoulder gave an audible pop and crackle as it settled back into place. Amazingly, though, the pain subsided almost immediately- at least comparatively.

"Don't call me 'highness,'" she said through grit teeth, holding her still-throbbing arm. The Lasso had made a deep impression in her wrist, too, though thankfully that hadn't been dislocated or broken.

"What happened, Sailor Moon?" Rei asked, almost gently. It was obvious none of them -save perhaps Venus- had expected to see her there.

"Just a klutz attack," she murmured, not quite sure why she was so apt to lie, why it had come so swiftly and readily. Or why she was loathe to take it back... They wouldn't believe her, she told herself. They'd think it wishful thinking, the imaginings of a desperate almost-lover.

The Senshi didn't look convinced. Did they think her capable of suicide?

"Oh come on, guys," she grumped. "It's nothing new." She looked to Venus, long pale hair glinting russet gold in the last of the sun's dying rays. "Thank you," she said, and Venus replied with a smile and a wink. She knew she wasn't just being thanked for the Lasso-rescue.

"Well, now that Odango has proven she's not a coward afterall," Rei said with a sniff as she stood. "Lets get investigating- there's got to be clues here somewhere about where the Dark Kingdom scum disappeared to."

"Mercury, start scanning for any residual portal traces," Venus was reclipping her Lasso around her waist, golden chain slipping down over one hip. "Mars, use your Mandala fire to try scrying- you might get better results here at the origin than at the Temple. Jupiter, with me- we're going to go examine the ground, see if anything worthwhile got discarded during the battle." The way she took command spoke of eons past, when there had been no Sailor Moon and the Senshi of Love had led them. Given her mental status, no one thought Sailor Moon would mind the usurping- and she didn't. Venus looked to her, a question in her gaze.

Her arm hurt. Her heart hurt. Her hip hurt, where he'd squeezed her. Absently, her fingers touched the spot. Yes, that more than anything told her something was wrong- more than the tainted tingle, more than the black eyes. Mamoru would never hurt her...

"I'm fine," she said, tipping them off that she really wasn't. A 'fine' Sailor Moon would have jumped at the chance to ditch the boring recon and grab a few free hours at the arcade, or at home, or the icecream parlor, or catch-up time with Naru.

Then again, she reasoned, now she had more reason than they did to find a way to track the Dark Kingdom...

Mamoru was alive, and he needed her help.

* * *

Woooot I hath returned! This is going to be somewhat dark, given the nature of one of the main characters and Usagi's mindset. This will be an ADULT fic, meaning there will be -yes I'm going to say it- sex. How explicit it will be, I don't yet know. And yes, when Beryl came upon the newly awakened Endymion, she did boink him. Gross, I know- but you are forewarned.

Oh, another major thing- saying 'high school' instead of 'junior high' was not a typo. I have an issue with writing sexy-scenes about a 14 year old. Deal.

This will also probably on the short side, in the range of ten chapters or so.

Please read and review! It's been a while since I've done a Sailor Moon fic, and I think my writing has improved greatly, certainly a far cry from the first chapter of Vow of Serenity...ha!

-Amber Penglass


	2. Chapter 2

**Obsession**

_Amber Penglass_

_**Chapter 2**_

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"Did you find what you needed?" The whispers from the dark no longer came as a surprise- instead, when the silence around him went on too long, it was more of an oddity.

"For now," he responded, rolling a long, single golden hair between his fingers. Beryl hissed at it. She came up beside him, slipping an arm around his waist and leaning her head on his shoulder, rubbing like a cat in heat. He'd have to pick _her _hairs out of the snags on his pauldrons later.

"If you felt the need of a momento, you should have just taken her whole head," she growled, danger in her tone. He disregarded it as easily as he disregarded her wandering hands. He raised the hair to the light, fascinated as the dim torchlight glanced off its narrow surface- it as as if he held a string of sunlight.

"That would have satisfied you, majesty, not me," he replied absently, coiling the hair and tucking it into a pouch at his belt. "Besides, I'd rather not kill her until I know for certain whether or not my memories are retrievable. You may be content with me as I am, but I dear madam am not." He moved away from her, ignoring how her face darkened. Truly, he had loved her before the loss of his memories? No, not before- there was affection for her now, as much as he didn't understand it. It was undeniable, unquestionable. So, he didn't question it. He supposed it was common enough for lovers to occasionally want to murder each other...

If she soured at him resisting her advances temporarily, how she'd shriek at the thought he might not want her around at all. Wisely, he'd kept such thoughts to himself.

He approached the only true piece of furniture in the room, a wide, waist-high pedestal on which there sat a larger version of the dark globe atop Beryl's staff. A myriad of unappealing colors rippled across its surface, shifting, undulating, never quite the same shades twice. With blue-black fire swirling around his fingertips and curling under his palm, Endymion raised his hand over the globe and let the fire sink into it. The globe rippled, seemed to resist showing him what he wanted to see- then at last settled around the warped image he wanted. With the essence of the hair still on his fingers, the image of the girl came quickly.

Seeing what he was Scrying, Beryl left with a huffy growl reminiscent of a spurned pet. He hardly noticed.

He frowned- it was her, it was Sailor Moon, but her image was distorted, blurred. She was in her human state- vulnerable, weak. Whatever magic protected her normal image, it was powerful. But he would crack it- he had to. It was a difficulty he had not anticipated when devising his plans for her.

But hours of trying different angles, different techniques, sheer force of will resulted in more of the same- the blurred vision of a golden-haired girl, the hairstyle faintly evident, but nothing more. Not age, features, or any distinguishing marks became visible. When he tried to remember the face that had been so close to his atop that tower, his memory, too, was blurred- as if more of that protective magic was reaching into his very brain. Everything he had conceived would have to be redone- it seemed, unless he managed to actually track her and witness her disenchanting herself -an unlikely event- he was goin gto have to content himself with getting information out of her while a Senshi.

He growled, knocking the globe aside. It rolled, losing its image before being halted by the slight lip that encircled the top of the pedestal. He'd almost hoped it had crashed to the floor- an argument with Beryl would have been a welcome distraction from the puzzle his quarry posed. The idea of trying to get information out of the elusive Senshi was not a pleasant one. Cornering them one by one as humans would have been much more more beneficial, and much more likely to produce results, much quicker. Once he had his memories, there was the added benefit of being able to kill them off with the ease of his own timing- blackmail with their family's safety, public exposure to draw them out, outright capture- the possibilities were endless once he knew their civilian identities. The only comfort he had was that he was certain that once he found out one identity, it would be easy to deduce the names of the rest without much effort. It never occurred to him to consider why the only Senshi he had any mind to investigate was the Moon warrior herself.

He had to see her face. Not the blur on the globe, not the fuzz in his memory- actually see her face. Had she been blurry when she'd been right in front of him? Or was it just his memory that was altered? His lips twisted into a snarl- he didn't like people playing with his mind, his memories. The thought that she was somehow in possession of his thoughts and recollections made his blood boil, made his determination to wrest every last one of his memoirs from her little blonde head strengthen tenfold.

Endymion was a man known for patience- all the more reason to not do the predictable.

_______________________

A frantic beeping was her only warning before her communicator blurted, "Attack in the park!" Before she could ask where in the park -the place wasn't exactly small- the communicator clicked off, and no amount of calling back raised any sort of response.

"Idiots," Usagi grumbled to herself, drying her hands, snatching her purse from the bathroom counter, and hurrying back out into the restaurant. Nervously, she approached the table where her parents and Shingo sat, her father trying to be romantic with her mother while ignoring Shingo's snide remarks on the food. It was a nice restaurant- the kind that served things with names that tended to be difficult to pronounce. Shingo was amusing himself renaming some of the more unique dishes.

"Ratatouille? More like Rat-a-pooey," he groused, flipping the page. "Gorgonzola? What, they serve muppets now?"

"Mom, Dad, I'm sorry-"

"You're not going anywhere, young lady," her mother cut in without waiting for the excuse she knew was coming. "We haven't been out to dinner in a long time, what with your father working so often. I don't care what emergency your friends think they have."

Usagi stood, mouth working like a fish's. But... It was obvious her mother would accept no explanation short of something drastic, something that would involve phone calls to confirm, and she didn't have time to call and convince Grandpa Hino to lie, and the likelihood of even getting ahold of Doctor Mizuno was minimal. Which left her with one option, one she'd pay for later.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, and simply turned and walked away.

"Usagi!" Her father's sharp tone followed her as she hurried out of the restaurant. She could imagine her mother's startled face- it had been a long time since Usagi had openly and blatantly defied her parents. Last time she had, spankings and a naptime had been involved. Thought if she were honest with herself, her home life had suffered remarkably little from her extracurricular activities... She wondered if it was chance that she and the Senshi had ended up in the situations they had. Rei's grandpa too old and absentminded to notice her frequent absences, Makoto's parents gone entirely, Minako on her own with parents that didn't care what she did, Ami's mother also absent nearly constantly with her doctoral duties. And Usagi, with parents too good at denial to admit their daughter had been acting oddly. Blessings in disguise, she supposed.

The run to the park was a long one, and she still had no idea which area of the park the attack was supposedly in. Scowling, she ducked into an alley by the restaurant, pinching her nose against the rancid scent of sour rice and rotting fish. Wishing she'd left her purse with her mother -it was a nice one- she hid it behind the dumpster and pulled her brooch, on a chain, from beneath her blouse, and called out as loud as she dared.

When the wash of power had faded to the background of her senses, she shook herself and made a leap up onto the fire escape, climbing swiftly up to the rooftop. She paused, peering int he direction of the park. There was a water tower at the south end, near her. She could climb it and see if she could see any hints as to where the fighting was- plumes of Mars's fire and jets of Mercury's ice would probably be dead giveaways. Decided, and pleased with herself for being so clever, she set off running and leaping across the rooftops. As she got closer, she expected to start sensing those tingles down her spine- but they were suspiciously absent.

They must be at the very far end of the park, she thought. Or, what if she was at the wrong one? 'The Park' had always meant this one, the biggest in the city, but there were other parks. Uneasy, she kept going for the watertower- she really had nothing else to go on. Still, she prayed it was at least the right park- if it wasn't, she'd never hear the end of it from Rei. More than not wanting to deal with her raven-haired friend's criticism and berating, she also didn't want to deal with the thought of how many lives might be lost before she got to the scene. The Senshi could down a youma without her- but the power of the Crystal certainly made it quicker work.

She made it to the water tower, crouching on the rounded, dirty top. It hadn't rained in a while. Below, the sounds of the city were muted, carried away on a wind that whipped her hair around her like a golden whirlwind. Miraculously, they never obscured her vision. More magic that somehow managed to make their impractical get-ups actually not that impractical, she supposed. There had to be a spell on these shoes to keep her from twisting an ankle, she was certain of it- there was no other explanation for how a being could leap from rooftop to rooftop in high heels and not have a sprained ankle or broken leg to show for it.

Thankful for enhanced vision, Sailor Moon peered through the night for any signs of a struggle. No birds taking flight, no screams, no jets of fire or explosions of bubbles, no flashes of lightning far below the cloud bank. She bit her lip with suppressed worry- where were they?

There! A the farthest corner of the park, a lightning bolt exploded-_ upwards_, not down. She jumped down, swinging from a ladder rung to a lower support beam, then down to the ground. She took off running faster than she remembered going in a long time, praying she wasn't too late. It normally didn't take her this long to get there...

But the clearing she exploded into was empty. Confused, she picked out the tallest tree, and quickly scaled its heights, peering out once again into the darkness. Nothing.

"Ack! This isn't funny, guys!" She whined, stamping her foot on the thick tree branch she stood on. Forgetting her Senshi-given strength, the branch snapped under her the sharp impact, and with a shriek she plummeted, grabbing onto a smaller branch as she fell, slowing her fall but not stopping her. With a sharp exhalation of breath, she landed atop the tree branch she'd broken off, cutting painfully into her back and making her arch abruptly as she landed. The wind knocked out of her, she gasped and struggled for air as she rolled over.

"Good one," she congradulated herself, heaving. She climbed to her feet, picking leaves out of her hair. Frustrated, she pulled out her communicator.

"Hello?" she hissed at the thing. "Anyone there? Mars? Mercury? Jupiter? Venus? Luna? God, _anyone_?" Her voice was precariously near a whine, and she sniffed back tears of frustration. With a howl she hurled the thing at the tree- it didn't break, Senshi items tended to be on the unbreakable side, but it left a good dent in the trunk. The communicator bounced once, then lay silent.

Two minds warred within her- the one that said screw them, if they couldn't bother telling her where they were, then why should she come? The more rational, and more rare, part of her said no, that must mean they were in even greater danger than normal, and getting to them was even more important. But that voice only reinforced the hopelessness- she had no idea where to look!

Then, behind her and a good distance away, came a cry too faint to be fully understood, but the voice and tone were unmistakable- it was the sound of a Senshi summoning her powers.

"Jupiter!" She cried, and without a second thought, took off charging through the park towards the sound. This time, when she emerged into another grassy area of the park, she saw the four other girls encircling a youma holding a great purple orb above its head, an orb that was translucent, pulsing with energy. And growing, fast.

"Sailor Moon!" Mercury shouted. "Quick, before she-"

The orb expanded outward in a blink, engulfing all four Senshi, pulsed once, then was gone. Sailor Moon blinked at an empty field. At once, it made sense- they couldn't have told her where in the park because the youma was transporting them all, randomly. By the time she'd gotten to the last location, they'd ported away. She stomped her foot again, safe on the ground this time instead of in a tree, leaving a deep imprint in the grass. She waited in agony, listening again for any sounds to tip her off...

There, to the west, a flash of fire pointed straight up, deliberately- a flare for her.

If she thought she'd run faster before, it was nothing compared to how fast she now sprinted towards where the flare had originated. It was a blonde and red blur that zipped past Venus whipping her golden chain in the air, and plowed into the youma, knocking the thing back and making the orb it held shrink drastically and flicker weakly, as the youma's concentration was broken.

For her trouble, Sailor Moon gasped as the world seemed to slip away from her, stars blinking across her vision. She felt like she'd rammed into a steel wall.

"Interfering moon brat!" the youma shrieked above her, shoving her away. She landed unceremoniously in the grass, blinking up as the youma renewed her grasp on her purple orb, raising it up high before bringing it down, right on top of her-

"Mars _Arrows_!" Lances of fire pierced the bubble, dissipating it enough for Sailor Moon to crawl away before she was transported elsewhere. The arrows went through the bubble and lodged themselves in the youma, flames licking orange flesh. The creature shrieked, taking one hand from the orb and trying to claw the flaming weapons out of her torso.

"Now, Sailor Moon!" Mercury cried. "The gem at her forehead!"

The forehead, of course. It was always the forehead...

At her silent call, the Crescent Wand formed in her hand, called from some deep recess she didn't care to look at too closely. The new addition, the crystal the size of a golfball, sat cradled in the golden crescent of the wand, gleaming softly in the moonlight. She felt it, somewhere inside her- that connection, eons of Silver Kingdom royalty, all bolstering her strength and whispering to her very soul. In that moment, as she raised it high, she wasn't Usagi, or Sailor Moon, or even the princess- she was part of a greater whole. The reason no one but she could wield the Crystal, was because it wasn't just her wielding it. It was her mother, her grandmother, every ancestor who'd ever boasted a drop of the blood that was in Usagi's veins- they all gathered behind her, joined their arms, their fingers, their intent with hers, and together they wrestled with the universe.

In the end, the barest sliver of power was all that was needed to vanquish the youma- a good thing, since Sailor Moon's infantile control couldn't handle much more without shredding the fabric of reality. She wondered if she'd ever tell the others what it truly entailed to wield the Crystal. She doubted it- if she were ever able to find the words to describe it, they'd be uneasy trusting her with it.

Silver light enveloped the demon, and her orb, and with shrieks and howls of agony, the thing simply vanished into a pile of dust. The light faded, and Sailor Moon fell to her knees, exhausted.

"Sorry I was late," she said, hoarse from the running and being stunned. She took stock of herself- was she hurt? She certainly ached all over... In taking toll of her injuries, one thing in particular made her shiver. That sensation, at the back of her neck... No, it couldn't be. She really was imagining things this time, it was the blow to her head.

She searched the treetops anyways, but saw nothing.

Mars came over and shoved at the dust pile with the ruby toe of her shoe. "Hmph," she said, sniffing. "Well, it turned out okay in the end."

"Did you have to leave dinner?" Jupiter asked, coming over and helping her up. She sagged gratefully against the taller girl's strength.

"Yeah..." she whined. "My food hadn't even arrived! And my parents are gonna kill me...they yelled at me to try to keep me from leaving, and I just left anyway! Aie!" She was working up a full wail, as she thought of the hell that waited for her at home.

"Calm down, we'll help you out," Venus grinned, twirling her Lasso absently. "How about we all head to your place? We'll stop on the way and pick up some groceries, and fix your family a great after-dinner nightcap -and some actual dinner for us- and we'll come up with a story why we had to steal you away."

Sailor Moon stifled her impending bawling session. "Really?"

"Sure, I'm famished," Mercury said, pinching an earring to dismiss her data visor.

"WooHoo!" their Princess leaped into the air with sudden renewed strength. "Thanks a bunch!"

"It's what we're here for," Mars sighed. "Now let's go, I'm starving, too!"

"I'll do the cooking!" Jupiter volunteered, to the various cheers of the other girls.

All in all, Moon thought, not a bad end to the evening.

________________

If he hadn't seen it for herself, he might not have believed it to have worked out so smoothly. It had taken some convincing- not altogether unpleasant convincing, either- of Beryl to release Portaia to his control, as she was one of the more gifted of his queen's minions. But she had served her role nicely, and proved quite entertaining. It was nice being able to port around, himself, without having to worry about being detected. The youma's own teleportations had masked his from being sensed.

Watching Sailor Moon prance around like a panicked doe had been nearly hysterical, if he'd been in the mood to laugh. Certainly, the obtaining of her communicator had been a nice bonus- the idiot had left it behind, beneath the tree she'd graced with her presence. The pink enamel and gold filigree glinted in the moonlight, nicely outlined against the black of his gloves. He looked at it, running a thumb over it's glossy surface. He'd meant to follow them, after they'd disbanded. It would be risky, especially since they'd unexpectedly stuck together after the fight- they normally split up, according to the dozens of reports he'd read from the Generals. But, something even better had been handed to him.

Almost affectionately, Endymion thumbed the watch open, and slipped out the stiff bit of paper adhered to the underside of the lid, cut round to fit inside. Looking up at him were three faces. On the left, a slender woman in her middle years with curling amber hair, and soft blue eyes. On the right, an aging man with grey in his flat brown hair. Not a particularly attractive man, he had the look of contentment common to men with wives and children and good jobs.

But in the middle...

How easy... A heart-shaped face looked up at him, blue eyes sparkling up at him from the layers of gloss. Pert pink lips were spread in a care-free grin. And above it all, two twin orbs of golden hair, with one thick length of it pulled forward to fall over one shoulder.

But the best part, oh the sweetest part of it all...

On the back, written in lazy lines, 'Mama, Usagi, and Papa Tsukino.'

_____________

Usagi sighed with contentment- a youma dusted, no major injuries (though her head still ached), a full stomach and placated parents made for a happy rabbit. She emerged from her bathroom, adjacent to her room, humming happily, the taste of Makoto's chocolate chip cookies -part of what had suffused her parents' anger- still on her tongue.

Luna had even excused herself, albeit with a huff, to Control Center to procure a new communication watch for Usagi when she confessed to losing it. Likely the cat would utilize the trip to do other things, and probably wouldn't be back til morning, which was thoroughly fine with Usagi- she could sleep in on the weekend for once, without her guardian nagging her to get up and train, study, try to remember her past, etc.

She dropped the damp towel to the floor, stepping out of the pile of fluff to reach for an oversized shirt and a pair of loose pink shorts. The shirt hung over one shoulder, and she absently shrugged to push it back up. Still humming, she grabbed her brush and plopped down on her he bed, grabbing a magazine to flip through while she brushed her hair.

A sequence of glossy faces and photoshopped bodies peered up at Usagi from the slick pages. The rhythmic movement of her brush through her wet hair soothed her aching head- or maybe it was the pain meds finally kicking it. Considering she may very well have an eensy weensy concussion (although Ami had scanned her head and said she was fine...she could be wrong..) Usagi had stolen one of her papa's vicadinfrom the medicine cabinet. Whether or not the drug was contributing to her languid mood, she couldn't say- but she certainly felt nice and relaxed, which was a treat after such a grueling evening.

Hair brushed, she set to twisting the damp locks up into her signature buns- it was always easier to straighten them up in the morning when they'd dried in the right shape. A lock of hair was being particularly difficult- half scowling, half pouting as the tugging on her scalp was aggravating the faded headache, she shoved the magazine aside with a huff and went to her vanity, plopping down rather ungracefully.

Her shirt had fallen over her shoulder again- annoyed, she shrugged it back up, still tugging at her hair. She gave a hard yank on the lock that wouldn't cooperate, and at last it fell into place, but the force of her movement had made her elbow knock into her jewelry box, sending the small silver contraption crashing to the floor.

Grumbling her own version of curses -things you'd normally hear used by your Sunday School teacher- Usagi bent to retrieve it, hair brushing her bare shoulder as, again, the shirt slipped down nearly to her elbow.

Later, she'd think of how it was nearly cliche. How, if she'd been in better possession of her wits, she should have made a snippy comment about watching too many vampire movies. But, when she sat up to see a dark silhouette behind her, all she could think was- how?

Her instinct to flee warred with her frozen fright. He stood, a mere foot -or less- behind her. Tall as her vanity stool was -her toes barely brushed the ground- her head was level with his midriff, a thick black leather belt set with ornate steel plates framing her face from behind. Breath coming in terrified flutters, she let her eyes snap up to his- still black, she saw with a barely suppressed wimper.

He regarded her with something akin to confusion- but it disappeared from his face the moment she looked at him, replaced with an amused indifference. She felt like a bug caught in the toying attentions of a bored cat. If she moved, he'd pounce.

_'He can't know!' _She thought forcefully. _'A random invasion, he must plan to use some innocent girl against Sailor Moon, draw her -me!- out of hiding...'_It was a tactic the Dark Kingdom had used before. A small part of her, a part that would be ignored until the adrenaline had faded, was rather disappointed. She'd hoped Mamoru would be more resourceful than those idiotic Generals.

"Usagi! Are you already in bed, dear?"

The sound of her mother's voice slashed through the tension like a chainsaw through concrete. With a gasp, she leaped from the vanity before she'd realized she'd intended to move, flying for the door-

In a twisted echo of encounters past, she bounced right off a broad chest covered in steel and hard-edged filigrees. She felt her nose crunch, and she barely bit back a cry of pain. A bruising hand on her arm grabbed her as she fell, pulling her back up against that angular armor. He leaned down, slightly, and said in a perfectly calm, almost entertained voice, "You scream, they die."

She believed him. To the bottom of her heart, she believed him.

"Y-yeah, Mom! Good night!"

"Allright, well... We still need to talk about how you ran out on dinner, young lady," the voice was right outside her door, now. She heard the doorknob start to turn.

Quite simply, Endymion just leaned back against the door, shutting it.

"Uh, don't come in, I'm still naked!" Usagi shut her eyes tight against his black, searching ones, suddenly full of a dark amusement. What did he seem to think she was going to do? Call out to betray him? Did he honestly think her that absentminded, to endanger her family?

"Oh, all right, well... I suppose it can wait to tomorrow, considering Mina's accident..." Her mother's voice was muffled through the door.

Oh yes, their excuse. Mina had even garnered a nice bruise on her thigh during the battle to aid their story of a car accident- Usagi's name had been her emergency contact printed on a card in her wallet, was their story.

"Th-thanks, Mom," she coughed out, forcing paralyzed vocal cords to cooperate. "Goodnight!" Then, with a harsh swallow, "I love you!"

"Love you too, sweetheart. Goodnight." Soft footsteps on the carpet slowly faded, ended by the soft click of her parents' bedroom door. She opened her eyes, glaring up at him.

"What do you want?" She hissed. Then, remembering she didn't yet know if he was here because of her Senshi identity, she added, "Who are you?"

His laugh was low and genuine, if laced with malicious intent. He brought up one hand to brush her upper lip, and she hissed at the contact, biting her lip against a yowl- she was bleeding, she saw as his gloved hand came away stained with something wet, the red barely visible against the black. She wanted to raise her own hand to stop up the flow, but she kept her fists resolutely at her side, letting her injured nose -not broken, she didn't think- bleed freely down her front.

"I don't care for pretenses..." He leaned down, lips so close to her ear, she could almost feel them moving against her skin. "...Sailor Moon."

____________________

Bwahaha. Oh, my evil, it knows no boundaries.

Thanks for the responses! Keep them coming!

And for everyone who wanted me to go over their stories, I am truly flattered, but the simple fact is I really don't have time- I get several of those requests a month, and I barely have time for my own stories, really. So, I am sorry, I wish I could help, and if I do find time I may dive into a chapter or two of some of them, but it's not likely, not with me graduating in four months. But, don't let that stop you guys from trying to get better! There are lists of people online and on this very site who offer their beta-ing services, don't be shy to ask one of them!

Love you guys. :-D

-Amber


	3. Chapter 3

**_Obsession_**

_Amber Penglass_

**Chapter 3**

**__________________________  
**

He kept his voice low, so as not to carry- but it was just as intense.

_'...Sailor Moon...'_

And there it was- her answer.

She let her face blanche, eyes bugging. "Wh-what are you talking about? I'm no super hero..." It wasn't difficult to lie- she certainly didn't feel like a heroine at the moment, trapped against him by a painfully tight grip on her right upper arm. She pushed against him. "What do you want? I'll- I'll scream, my dad has a shotgun, he won't let you touch me-" She beat against his shoulders, bruising her fists against his unmoving, unforgiving breastplate.

"I mean, just look at me, you...you dumbo!" She ignored her aching hands, still pushing against him- but he moved as much as a mountain would. "Do I look like someone who jumps around at night in a short skirt and high heels? Or who fights evil?" She let a whine color her voice, trying to raise the pitch without being too loud.

"Very good," he praised with a predatory grin. "I might almost be swayed..." With his free hand, the bloodied hand, he pulled something out that had been tucked behind his belt, and held it up where she could see. "If I didn't have this." Usagi froze, staring- and giving herself away as she made no effort to hide that she recognized her communication watch.

Chuckling, he thumbed the lid open, turning it around so she could see the ticket to her death- the little round cut-out of a photo of herself and her parents, meant to be a source of strength when she felt her spirits waning, when she wanted to give in...instead, it was the key to ending it all. Tears held at bay by sheer terror now welled up, lip beginning to tremble. Seeing it, Endymion tilted his head, snapping the watch shut and tucking it back into where it had come from, using the newly unoccupied hand to again wipe at her lips, his gloved thumb brushing over over the shaking shape of them, sweeping away the flaking, drying blood.

"So convincing," he murmured, almost to himself as he watched her face crumble, fingers lingering at her mouth.

"Please, Mamoru," she choked. "Don't do this, you've got to remember..."

It was as if a switch had been flicked. Anger filmed his eyes, and his hand, surprisingly gentle only a moment before now seized her chin in a crushing grip, twisting her face up to his.

"Remember?" He echoed. "I would dearly love to, little moon. But, see," he released her arm, and a flood of tingles flowed down the limb as blood was once again allowed to reach her extremities. He moved that hand to her head, gripping it and digging her fingers into her scalp. She suppressed a whimper. "But, there's a problem... I don't know where they are. Are they in here?" His fingers dug in deeper, and this time she did give a cry, stifled by his other hand gripping her chip. She tried to shake her head, loosen his grip. This was wrong, all wrong! She felt something like panic begin to bubble up. She struggled, she kicked, she tried to bite.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" She hissed, letting the tears fall free- let him see, she didn't care. "Mamoru, what's wrong with you? Why are you doing this? What did Beryl do to you?"

"Mamoru...you keep using that name."

"Because it's your name, you idiot! Chiba Mamoru, freshmen in college- your parents died when you were little, and you lost your memories in the accident. Your best friend is Motoki, he runs an arcade- you go have coffee at the place every day! You love tormenting me, you're always-"

Endymion laughed, cutting her montage short. "Well, you got something right." He shoved her away, abruptly, roughly, and she crashed into her vanity- the barest moment before she did, a bubble of energy expanded outward from Endymion's hand. Her shoulder shattered the mirror, shards of glass falling all around her. Endymion advanced before she could get to her feet, grabbing her by the throat and lifting her up off her feet, shoving her into the wall by the ruined vanity. "I really do enjoy tormenting you."

She coughed, struggling to pull air into her lungs. Her eyes went to her door, expecting her parents or Shingo to come investigate- but the door remained shut, the house silent.

"I really hate having to be quiet," he said with mild distaste, and she saw the purple-black bubble that enveloped most of her room- a sound barrier. Mingled relief and panic rose in her- her parents wouldn't be summoned to their death by unexplained noises from their daugher's room, but her chances for rescue had just decreased that much more. If only she'd had the presence of mind to grab her brooch, sitting on her vanity, still, amid shattered glass and spilt powders and nailpolish.

"Mamoru, please, stop this..."

"Stop calling me that!" He snarled, and he slammed her back against the wall, and she saw stars.

"No!" She bit back. "It's your name! Mamoru, Mamoru, Mamoru, Mamoru-" Another slam, and she gasped, the stars turning to blinking black spots.

"My name," he said with conviction. "Is Endymion."

With a flash of deepest, most sorrowful knowledge, she knew it was. Just as her name was Serenity- or had been. She looked at him, tears clouding her vision even further, choking on a gasp that threatened to become a sob.

"Not anymore... You died, Endymion. A long time ago."

"Enough," he said, firm and angry. "You are going to tell me what you did with my memories- you are going to return them to me, and then I will forget I ever found out your true name, and we will continue our little war without these shortcuts."

"I didn't take your-"

Another slam, and she slipped into darkness.

_______________________________

He stayed, he told himself, because he needed to know if she died- if she did, he would have to restart his search for what happened to his missing memories.

He shouldn't have been so rough. In Senshi form, bolstered by ancient magics, her body transformed into something more than human- he had seen her taken much more brutal beatings than what he'd delivered.

But, human...fully human... He hadn't considered her frailty.

She lay where he'd dropped her on the bed, breathing shallowly, a lump forming between the strands of gold pulled into disheveled and tangled knots of hair, on the back of her head. She had landed facing the window, away from him. He stood at the very center of her room, the broken vanity and the still-present blue-purple bubble the only evidence that anything had happened. He glowered at her, willing her to wake. He wouldn't use physical violence this time. He saw that as much as she abhorred pain, it didn't frighten her. No, he'd seen what had truly frightened her- the threat to her family.

Interesting. He had considered it in passing, but it had never really sunk in that knowing who Sailor Moon's family was, was potentially more useful than knowing _her_ identity. Perhaps because he had no one important enough that there was any risk of them being used against him.

He thought of Beryl, briefly, and then dismissed it- a pleasurable companion, certainly, but nothing he would regret the loss of.

But, he thought unwillingly, he'd certainly regret Sailor Moon's loss- especially if she died before he got what he needed out of her. She was, he was forced to admit, utterly amusing. So persistent. So passionate. And such a damn good liar, too. The conviction with which she had called him by that name almost made him want to believe it- she certainly had had a good back up story waiting. The name 'Motoki' even sounded familiar.

It really was going to be a shame she had to die. Unbidden, images of what it might be like to have her for himself rose in his mind. If, when it was all over, she was made to understand the supremacy of the Dark Kingdom. Beryl might not like it...she'd most certainly prefer the girl dead. Endymion grinned- it would be worth keeping Sailor Moon alive just for that, just to nettle the prickly queen.

She moaned, then. A soft sound, borne of pain. He frowned and stepped closer. She was still unconscious, but her breathing had improved, slightly...or had it? He stared at her chest rising and falling, shallowly, then deeper, then shallow again.

He growled to himself- this was no good. Even if she wasn't going to die, she wasn't going to wake up anytime soon. Cursing, he strode to the bed and knelt on it, leaning over her to turn her fully on her back. As he moved her, her arm fell off her side and landed on the pink coverlet, head lolling to the other side- and he saw her face fully for the first time since she'd fallen unconscious. Hesitation, unfamiliar and quite loathsome, pricked him. Her breath came in short, sharp puffs from between lips that the photo hadn't really captured very well- they were much pinker, much more cupid-bow when relaxed. Lashes brushed smooth cheeks, marred with tears and flecks of blood. Trails of dried, flaking red trailed down her chin, down her neck, disappearing beneath the worn edge of the time-softened shirt, soaking its collar and staining it a deep burgundy. Her bare shoulder was slashed from the glass, the wounds looking angry and red.

Guilt- powerful, swift, like a torrent that threatened to sweep him out of himself and bury him beneath its cloying weight-

Then it was gone, so abruptly he wasn't sure he'd ever felt it.

He shook himself, and scowled, reminding himself she was the enemy.

Then, still bent over her, he slipped an arm beneath her waist and lifted her up, appreciating how her back arched over his arm, pushing pert breasts up against the thin fabric of the shirt. Her head fell back, arms falling limply to let the back of her hands rest on the bed. He pulled her up against him with gentleness he hadn't planned on, writing it off as part of his promise to not break her again. His other hand came up behind her head, lifting it like an infant's, cradling it and feeling the hard, hot lump he'd made. She whimpered, slightly, and the sound fascinated him.

Blue-black energy began to surround his hands, sinking into her head, and her side where his other hand had wrapped around her narrow waist. Ribbons of the stuff began to circle around them both, dark energy sinking into her flesh, healing it, reviving it by forcing the body to bend to its will, forcing a healing that her body tried to reject. He frowned- he hadn't anticipated that. A soft golden glow surrounded her, shielding her from his healing energies. Anger replaced his patience, and he crushed her to him, closer, bringing her head up higher and _shoving_ those dark blue energies. She gave a cry, even in her unconscious state.

Still, their powers warred, and he had to marvel at her strength- even unconscious, her powers were formidable.

A faint, tickling memory... He blinked, dissolving the foggy recollection of laying down, surrounded by these very same dark energies, cold lips pressed to his.

Ah, was that what he was missing? Somehow, he doubted it. He shook the memory off -it was useless- and continued to try to press those dark ribbons against her flesh, focusing on her skull. The golden glow flickered, once, twice, then faded away. But not, he noticed, before something else interesting happened- on her brow, level with his lips, a faint mark glowed and guttered like a candle-flame before fading away with the rest of the glow.

A crescent moon?

Why...why was that familiar to him?

And why did the sight of it on this girl's brow make him gasp, make him suddenly tremble with another crashing wave of nostalgia, of guilt and...

He didn't care to name the last emotion, struggling against the rest of the flood of confusing things shoving their way into his brain.

Slowly, she opened her eyes, peering at him with a sleepy blue gaze, staring at him as he fought down the clawing flood of alien sensations that crescent moon had invoked.

"Endy?" Her voice, soft, confused, an echo of a past forgotten stole his breath- something he was sure wouldn't have happened had he been in full possession of his wits. But the sight of the crescent mark, and the sound of her voice, breathy and trusting, undid him for the barest moment- but it was a moment that was long enough for him to let his head tilt down, and his lips fall against hers in a dazed, almost accidental manner.

Maybe if she hadn't responded, it would have ended there. But she sighed into him, relaxing her warm, pliant body against the hard angles of his armor, and he regretted its interfering presence. She tilted her head back, reaching up to him- accepting, wanting, inviting. He took the invitation, angling his mouth against hers, moving his lips over hers and savoring the sweet breath and chocolate taste of her. His fingers sifted through the loosened strands of her hair, other hand around her lowering and gripping the soft flesh of her hip.

It was the sigh that brought him back to himself- the sigh that was half contentment, half impatience, her small hands gripping the sides of his face, pulling strands of his hair through her fingers.

As quickly as it had fallen apart, he yanked it back together, shoving her away to land harshly at the other end of the bed, head bouncing off the wall. She lay, dazed, lips swollen and eyes glossed with confusion and an unfamiliar desire, staring at him as reality visible filtered back into her expression. Mingled horror and despair greeted him as he stood, looking down at her with contempt.

"When next we meet, I expect to be told where my memories can be found." Then he was gone, faded away into the same flicker of blackness as on the Tower. The bubble of silence faded with him.

Usagi stared at where he had vanished. A gasp. Then another. Then a series of shaking, gasping breaths that descended into a wracking sob.

_____________________________

There was a cat biting her hand.

Really, hadn't she shed enough blood in the last 24-hours?

"Usagi, thank goodness!" Luna released her red and irritated hand, jumping up fully on the bed to butt her forehead with her own furry one, clearly relieved. "What in the world happened?"

"Mamoru was here," she said, voice hoarse from, she assumed, crying herself to sleep. How could he?

Luna's eyes bulged. "Here? In your room? He's _alive_?"

"I guess so," she murmured, remembering she'd neglected to tell them she'd seen him atop the Tower. Her first kiss...stolen, like that...

Luna glanced around, eying the destroyed vanity. "He...he did this? Usagi? He hurt you?"

She shook her head, as if denying it to Luna would make it not true. Belatedly, she realized she wasn't in any pain, like she should be after being thrown around.

"He knows who I am," Usagi said, forlorn and utterly exhausted, despite having just woken. "He...he thinks I stole his memories, Luna. Beryl must have brainwashed him somehow, made him think we were the enemy."

_'But...he kissed me... Enemies don't kiss enemies...' _With a wince, she remembered Nephlite and Naru.

Luna nodded. "It would make sense. With the revelation that Mamoru was Endymion's reincarnation, they would think him a powerful tool to use against you."

_'They were right,'_ she thought to herself, correcting her earlier assessment- she definitely had pain, but it was internal, intangible. She gripped her shirt, feeling the front of it crunch with dried blood. Luna noticed it, and gasped.

"Not mine," she lied. "I...I managed to cut his hand."

Luna relaxed, and Usagi wondered why she didn't feel any guilt at lying to her Guardian.

"We need to call a Senshi meeting," Luna declared, flipping up in the air, curling around an invisible point before landing gracefully- from that point she'd jumped over, a new communicator watch twinkled into existence. This one was white, with silver and gold inlaid into it's glossy surface. This time, she thought as she lifted it to call the girls, no photos.

________________________

He hadn't told Beryl he knew who Sailor Moon was- the thought of doing so riled up a strong possessive reaction. _'Mine,'_ was all he could think, snarling silently as he strode through the dark, vaulted halls of the Dark Kingdom's palace- or the portion of the intricate caves and underground fortresses that served as the unofficial palace._ 'Mine to handle- my memories, my problem.'_ He was afraid if he told her, she would kill the girl before he had the chance to get what he wanted. Beryl had been suspiciously insistent that his lost memories could stay lost... A lover's insistence of faith, or something else?

Everyone, from what he'd gathered, was wary of the Queen. She normally raged and stormed, and while she still did on occasion when things did not go her way -and they frequently didn't when it came to their plans of re-emerging into the world- she was unusually...stable, as of late. To ask her, it was due to his presence. She had been lost without him, bereft of the anchor and pillar he was to her.

He frowned, and a minion scuttled out of his way. It was true, she did seem so much calmer and...happier, when he was around. He was forced to admit to himself that a part of him was...well, pleased by this. He certainly preferred it when things ran smoothly, and they certainly were running smoother since his awakening, that much he'd learned from his own research into the efforts of the Kingdom these past few months. They went smoothest of all after she'd been with him for a while, either simply in his presence at a meal, or....other things.

A ghost of pressure on his lips, sweet and sighing, and a murmured whisper of a name in his ear, _"Endy..."_

His breath seized in his lungs, and he stumbled. Sucking in cold, damp air, he glanced around- no one had seen. His gloved hand rose of its own accord to touch his lips. Not the memory of Beryl's lips, oh no...no, another pair, much more recently kissed. His eyes clenched tight as he shook his head, trying to dispell the still-lingering sweetness on his tongue, but instead the darkness invited visual memory, too-

Blue eyes, beneath that golden crescent, soft eyes, trusting eyes, the faintest smile on kiss-bruised lips-

He let out a sliver of a moan, his body betraying him as the memory of pliant warmth, pressed against him, made itself known. He banged his fist against the rough wall.

Gasping for breath as if he'd been kicked in the diaphragm, he pushed away from the wall, heading for a very specific chamber.

The room he entered was vast, though not so much so as Beryl's audience chamber, where reports were made and punishments meted out. But appeared nearly as big, since what little light was there was reflected by the immense pool of mirror-still water. At the shore near him, only a handful of minions wallowed, mostly female, all alluring despite their oddities.

"Out!" He bellowed, strong voice rebounding off the water to echo even louder in the chamber. Nervously, the women and the few males gathered their robes and belongings and slinked from the pool chamber. Before they were even fully gone, he'd shed his cloak and pauldrons, releasing their catches to let his shoulder-pieces fall to the pebbly shore. His breastplate, belt, boots, greaves followed, then shirt, hose, gloves, until at last he made a shallow dive into the pool, fully naked. The impact of the cold water stole his breath, but he kept kicking, going down til he touched bottom- he couldn' see a thing, this far down- and kicked off, rising to the surface just as his oxygen ran out. He gasped, shaking water from his eyes. The icy cold barely took the edge off his unexpected, rising lust. The growl he released echoed in the chamber, becoming a deeper sound, not quite human.

Again he dived, determined to take control of his own body again. He told it what it wanted, not the other way around.

Besides...riling up his queen by bringing her defeated nemesis here was one thing. Fucking her was another. If it had been him, it would have been the other way around- but Beryl was female, despite not being entirely human, and who understood the priorities of women?

When at last the heat in his blood and the pressure in his loins subsided, he dragged himself, gasping and shivering, out of the water and onto the shore. He sensed her a few moments before he fully emerged, and stood calmly, catching his breath, as Beryl raked her eyes over his lean, dripping form.

"Magnificent," she murmured, coming forward, clearly aroused. She was insatiable- hadn't he taken care of her that morning? She came around, leaning against him, pressing her generous cleavage to his wet chest. "My Prince, you truly are a wonder," she said. He remained unmoved, although he stood and let her touch her fill. After a while of no success, she frowned- almost a pout, on her, and not an attractive one. Placating, he leaned down and brushed his lips to hers. She seemed to delight when he took the initiative...perhaps it would satisfy her until later, when he succeeded in sorting out his physical confusion. Beryl had never failed before in arousing him, if nothing more than physically.

"It is the cold," he assured her, going to his pile of clothing and armor. He donned pants and shirt, scooping up the rest in his cloak and bowing before exiting the chamber. If Beryl looked genuinely hurt, he would have confused the expression with anger.

Tomorrow, he told himself, he would not let the Moon brat affect him so. How she did so in the first place, was proof she must have some influence over him, some mind game she'd employed without him realizing it. Yes, that explained it. It was also proof that she must have his memories, after all, or at least the key to unlocking them.

And yet, when he sought his bed that night, it wasn't full bosoms and red hair that had him hard and wanting in his sleep. He slept fitfully, and when he awoke he was sweating and resisting the ghost of lithe, urgent body in his arms and hot, sweet skin on his tongue.

_____________________________________

"Well, at least we know he's alive," Makoto pointed out, breaking the silence that had followed Usagi's tale. The normally chipper blonde looked sullen, even when presented with a plate of tarts and a glass of Italian lemonade. Sitting beside her, Minako rubbed her back, looking concerned- they all looked concerned, and not just for Usagi. If Endymion knew who she was, it was likely their identities were known, as well.

"How did he find out?" Rei mused aloud, sitting across from her at Makoto's table. The small, mature-looking apartment had been a haven for them more and more often, as it became more dangerous to discuss things that might be overheard in places like the arcade and even Rei's temple- temple's were unofficially public, and someone could walk in at any time. Even if they didn't, the walls were thin, and there was always Grandpa Hino.

Usagi reached for the lemonade, mouth suddenly dry. She hadn't told Luna about him finding her watch, hadn't told the girls. It didn't seem that it would make much of a difference, not now, and they would only yell and sigh and berate, and she would feel horribly guilty- guiltier, she supposed.

"One thing that bothers me," Minako said, frowning. The unfamiliar expression on the girl's face made her look more the leader she had once been. "Why did he heal you? If you can call that healing...you said you felt sick?"

Usagi nodded. "I remember waking up, feeling...dirty. And then I felt..." she blushed, remembering the hand in her hair, the arm around her, his breath on her face right before-

She shook herself a bit, demanding she not remember her stolen first kiss. Tears pricked her eyes, and she sniffed.

"I'm sorry, Usa," Minako moved closer, hugging her from the side.

"But we need to know," Ami said gently, pulling out her Mercury scanner. "We need to know if he had an ulterior motive to healing you, if he did something while he did."

"I'm sure he had a higher motive," Rei said. "But it was probably just to keep her alive for another round of questioning."

Usagi felt nauseous all over again. She didn't know if she could -or wanted to- survive another visit like that. Not because of the physical pain, but because she didn't know if she could handle seeing him like that, not handle knowing what he'd become, what he thought she was, what he was... What was more, she didn't know if she could handle knowing that a large part of her...simply didn't care.

Her heart seized, and the bite of tart she'd taken got lodged in her throat.

She was crushed, that her first kiss had been stolen like that. And yet... With a jolt to her gut, she remembered how it had felt to wake up to his kiss. A slow, powerful warmth spread from her lips, to sink into the pit of her belly, and she knew that the part of her that didn't care had gotten bigger.

She realized, abruptly, that she wasn't afraid of seeing him because of what she feared he may do- she was afraid, because of what _she_ may do.

________________________

Not so bad as the last one...perhaps my evil has been reined in. :-D

In response to an anonymous review left by 'LadyVipaka,' who asked me to contact her and yet left no contact info, I ask you to e-mail me to discuss your accusations, and heartily protest you bringing up such a matter through a review! Such concerns should have been brought to my attention through e-mail, or 's private messaging system. It take two seconds to make an account here, whereas on Aria's Ink (I googled your name and that was the only link that came up with a fic, so I assume that's the fic you're talking about, though I have never read it) is still giving me issues about some kind of 'token' to make an account.

To everyone else, thanks for reading! Feedback is, as always appreciated, good or bad- and I am expecting some bad for the Beryl-Endymion hinting. Strong hinting? What was in this chapter was very restrained from what I had in mind originally...

Adieu!

-Amber


	4. Chapter 4

**Obsession**

_Amber Penglass_

_**Chapter 4  
**_

________________________________

"Very good, Plethora." Beryl granted one of her toothy smiles, one she thought was benevolent and becoming, but instead only served to add to her resemblance to one of those nightmare-inspired deep-sea creatures. With her pale, translucent skin that always seemed moist, and overly large eyes, it wasn't much of a stretch to begin with.

The demonic woman kneeling before her Queen stood, releasing the sizable ball of energy she'd been holding up as offering. Beryl held out a beckoning hand, and the green swirl gathered around her palm before she transferred it to the multi-colored sphere atop her staff

Plethora was not one of the Queens treasured few, the ones with just enough power to cross the barrier that kept them sealed away and bring back energy- the energy they needed to shatter the barrier once and for all. Slow as the Generals' progress had been, they were very close. Partially because of the Queen's impatient- without the reserves growing fat off of human lifeforce, she'd turned on her own people. Plethora was in charge of draining to death any minion, punishment for the slightest infraction. Or none at all, if Plethora simply hadn't met her quota for the day.

Endymion wondered if his liege had thought of the fact that if they at last emerged into the world with their numbers quartered, it might all be for nothing? She had peered into the world, yes, but she'd hardly glanced at what the modern would could throw at them, supernatural or not. Afterall, the world powers had decimated Japan once, why wouldn't they do it again if they perceived a very real, even worse threat? He'd brought up such a thought that very morning, with her nibbling on his ear til it bled, and had only received a vicious bite for his trouble.

Not that he particularly minded the pain- more, he minded that her foolishness didn't affect him. He should be frustrated, should want to help her and make her see that he had her triumph at heart. But he simply didn't care. Truth was, he'd had his own plans dominating his thoughts since he'd been unable to sleep late the night before. With Beryl whispering fervent plans and goals in his ear, he knew it wouldn't be long before they were ready to push their way back to Earth. Then, if Sailor Moon wasn't already dead, she'd surely die in the onslaught. Even if they ended up failing, it would be well after a long and bloody battle, after Earth was educated as to its true past. The chances of Sailor Moon and her Senshi living past the first few battles, seeing as they'd likely be alone, trying to protect the innocence of the world, were slim.

And he still did not have his memories.

"The day of our return is soon!" Beryl crowed into the shadowy crowd, cheers meeting her declaration. Her sharp smile widened. "This very night, our forces will gather the last of the energy needed to feed our Great Leader! Metallia, who will free us! More cheers, the sound comprised of hisses, growls, and roars. It had been a long time since a true human had inhabited the Dark Kingdom. Even those that were once human were now mere shadows of their former selves, twisted by the dark energies that permeated their world.

Endymion rolled the name around on his tongue- Metallia. He had never heard it before, he was sure. Why did it sound familiar? And why had he not known of this Leader? The thought that there was someone above Beryl was startling- he didn't peg her as the type to willingly bow to anyone. Then again, it likely wasn't entirely willing- if there was a being powerful and dark enough for Beryl to bow to, it was guaranteed to be a entity of sizable power.

Beryl had dismissed the massive gathering. Some slunk into shadows, some vanished, some sank away into the ground, while others simply walked out until the massive chamber was empty. Then, and only then, did he approach, emerging from the dark recesses behind her throne with a silence that was odd given the amount of armor he wore.

"Who is Metallia?" He asked, coming up behind her as she relaxed out of her straight-back pose, lounging on her hard stone throne as if it were furs that conformed to her. Indeed, it seemed as if the stone cradled her anyway- even the hard material didn't dare be uncooperative.

"I want you to lead tonight's energy gathering," she said, ignoring his question.

"Of course," he responded, without thinking. He frowned. Being occupied would complicate his plans. Again, he would have to alter them last minute. Annoyed, he asked again, "Who is Metallia?"

Beryl shifted, opened her mouth, a dismissive look on her face-

_~Bring him.~_

The voice wasn't quite a voice. It was an unmistakable command, one that had Beryl stiff and alert as he'd never seen him before. To him, the instrution left a tingle down his spine that wasn't entirely unpleasant, but certainly as dark and vile as anything he'd ever felt before. And again...it was familiar, just as the name had been.

"Metallia," he said, answering his own question. Beryl looked at him with fury in her gaze, clearly about to deny it. "I doubt," he said slowly. "Our 'Great Leader' will want to be kept waiting." Looking like a girl thwarted out of a good secret, she stood with a dangerous grace, turned, and held out her staff to the smooth stone wall behind her throne. The orb of decaying colors swirled, intensified, and a portion of the wall...melted.

Without a word, he followed her into the darkness, trusting his other senses as he stepped down a pair of steps. His sight returned just as the stairwell began to curve down and around, and he realized that the steps hung suspended in nothingness. Below, he spied a great stone platform and a door that soared almost high enough to have its top level with where they'd first stepped onto the stairs. Somehow, the door seemed more symbolic, than an actual door.

Stepping onto a platform, he felt ghostly fingers pull at his cloak, the clasps of his armor, his hair, his mind, fingers that left trails of heat, like burning rivers of bilge.

"Greatest Metallia," Beryl murmured, moving before the door and falling to one knee, head bowed. "I have brought more of what you ask, and I give it willingly." The staff, held in one hand, began to glow, and a tendril of darkness seeped out from beneath the door, rising to form a shapeless cloud of blackness, with a pair of slitted ruby lines that were suspiciously akin to eyes. A finger of the inky darkness reached out, touching the green glow around the orb on the staff, and began to drink in the stolen power. The dark cloud swelled and roiled with new life, and Endymion watched with fascination.

When the energy was gone, the entity did not retract its claw, but rather reached past Beryl to loop around Endymion. Without instructing them to, his legs began to move forward. The closer he went, the stronger the sensation of invisible fingers in his mind became. He fought down his automatic urge to fight- this being would crush him if he resisted.

_~Wise,~ _came the voice again, the voice that wasn't truly a voice. More...an impression, a concept. He was brought right to the edge of the cloud that rolled and seethed around itself, like a barely restrained storm. Then, in a more intimate part of his mind, ~You will bring her to me, human prince.~ Instinctively he realized, these words were for him, and him alone. Beryl could not hear. An image was pressed into his mind, an image of a woman, suspiciously alike to Sailor Moon. The main difference, he noted, was that the woman in his mind was blatantly inhuman. Her youth and beauty was otherworldly, her limbs too long and graceful to have been developed in a terran environment. Her hair, too, was impossibly long, longer than she was tall, and it floated around her like a silver mist, anchored to her body by two twin spheres of hair pinned atop her head. She stood at a balcony, her back to him. She was peering over her shoulder, her face forlorn as fire licked the horizon behind her.

On her forehead, a golden crescent moon glittered in the firelight.

If he hadn't been so focused on the dark claws set into his mind, he might have gasped aloud. As it was, he felt Metallia...laugh. Not a sound, but the sensation of black amusement.

_~Interesting, what nothing can make you humans truly forget...~ _The image changed, and the woman was no longer a graceful, saddened vision. The only thing that remained the same was the long, flowing silver hair. But the pale blue eyes had turned dark, the crescent disappeared, her loose, ethereal gown replaced with a bodice of tight black leather. She sat on a stone throne, perfectly cylindrical pillars flanking her as she sat, elbow resting on her throne's arm, chin in her hand and a lazy, malicious grin set on a pair of ruby lips. Her other hand was held, palm up, at eye level, cradling something that floated a mere inch or two above her gently curved palm, fingers curled almost like talons up and around it- the Silver Imperium Crystal. She held it casually, like a cheap glass of wine, and instantly he knew that the Crystal was Metallia's focus, far more than any girl, human or not.

_~You will bring her to me.~_

Endymion let a slow, heady grin spread his lips wide. He'd been worried, at first, that this Metallia might interfere with his intentions- instead, it seemed the entity shared them.

"As you will, my Liege."

Endymion pretended not to notice the tight jaw, dark eyes and waves of fury emanating from Beryl- even though she hadn't heard Metallia's instructions, she didn't like being left out. It was something she was supposed to get used to.

______________________

After hours of Ami's scans turned up nothing but the faintest remnant traces of dark energy in Usagi's system, the girls were still not satisfied.

"It doesn't make sense," Rei said firmly, a hand on her arm, as if afraid Usagi would bolt. It was likely, the blonde admitted to herself with a sulking pout.

"Ami checked me out, I'm fine, he didn't do anything but bruise me a bit," Usagi whined.

"And then healed the bruises? That's not a normal Dark Kingdom move," Minako pointed out.

"Well Mamoru's not a normal Dark Kingdom general!" Usagi snapped. "He was brainwashed- maybe some of the real him got through!"

"It is possible," Makoto supported- despite that she had a firm arm around Usagi's waist, guiding her down the street. With Rei on her left, Makoto on her right, Minako in front, and Ami trailing behind with her nose in a book on supernatural cleansing, she'd never felt more like her friends were...well, an honor guard, rather than friends. Rethinking how she really didn't have a choice but to go along, she rethought the 'honor' part.

"It'll be quick, Usagi," Ami soothed. "We just want to make sure you're really ok. We can't afford to loose you- and we would rather keep you around for other reasons, too." The blue-haired mouse of a girl had a lilt of teasing to her voice, and it surprised Usagi enough that, for a short distance, she stopped dragging her feet. In that short distance, they'd arrived at their destination.

Crown Arcade's silent neon sign was dim, the lights inside off save for a few faint fluorescent bulbs, more for the purpose of making any would-be burglars uneasy at the thought of being seen than anything else. The games were turned off, the counters gleaming slightly in the mild lighting. The doors were locked, the automatic gears and sensors turned off.

And yet, when they approached...the doors slid open, silently, at Minako's raised hand. Usagi glimpsed her transformation wand hidden in her sleeve. Huh. Would her brooch do that, too? She would have to ask. She thought Luna was the only one who could get into Central Control. Speaking of which...

"Where's Luna?" Usagi asked as they entered, whispering. The cat had left partway through the meeting at Makoto's, saying she'd meet them here later that evening.

"There are no audio sensors, Usa," Rei sighed, rolling her eyes and pulling her along. "She's probably already inside."

Minako went to the Sailor V game, and flicked the power switch at its back. With a whirl of colors and soft, cheerful beeps, the game console came to life. Minako navigated the controls to what Usagi assumed was a hidden menu... Afterall, she'd memorized this game, and had never seen the option 'Verify Persona.'

"Aino Minako," the other blonde said. There was another series of beeps, and the message, 'Persona verified' flashed red and yellow.

Then, slowly, and with the faint sound of old gears, the game slid aside, a panel beneath it also sliding away to reveal a narrow passage, a flight of narrow, steep stairs going down into a dim, sterile room.

"Down we go." Minako pranced down first, and the girls followed. Once all were down, Minako flipped a switch at the wall, and the game console above was heard sliding back into place.

"Good, you're here," Luna's muffled voice was heard from somewhere to the back of the room, but Usagi was too busy gaping. She'd never been here before...

The floor was comprised of large, plain white tiles, the walls also white, layered in stiff sound-absorbing foam pads, the sort found in professional sound studios, the ceiling lined with more of the stuff. To the left, an expanse of high, white lab tables were anchored to the wall, the shelves filled with things she was sure her Chemistry teacher would sell his kidney to get in his classrooms.

To the right, there was an expansive bay of computers she was sure she'd never seen in any electronics store, not even close. Digital readouts were projected onto glass panels hung suspended from the ceiling by something akin to fishing string. Instead of normal keyboards, there were long control panels of flat buttons and sleek nobs, all faintly illuminated from beneath. To the back, in a small bay of its own, was what was obviously a medical facility of some kind. Only designed for one patient at a time, it had a single bed, and it was surrounded by more machines she was certain no modern engineer would make heads or tails of. She wondered if even Luna knew how it all worked... Or what they'd do if something broke.

"Most of it was hidden underground on Earth eons ago, preserved in vacuumed chambers." Minako came up beside her, smiling a bit at her amusement. "There's another station like this in England, though not as expansive."

"This is Silver Millennium technology," Usagi said, understanding. A faint memory...a feeling of magic and machine, technology and legend working together in an odd yet smooth harmony. So strange...

Minako was nodding. "We've forgotten how a lot of it works... But the important stuff was easy enough to figure out. This is how Luna and I kept in contact, before I came over from Europe, and how Luna tracked you down. It's the 'oomph' behind Ami's data computer, too- all the actual computing is done here, and the results sent to her portable one. Same with our communication devices- the signals are routed through here, to keep us off the public airwaves."

"Wow," Usagi breathed. She'd never really thought about the technology behind their trinkets and gadgets. She supposed she'd just assumed it was all pure magic... But this explained where Luna disappeared to all the time. Then, the most obvious question of all made her frown. "How did this all end up underneath an arcade?"

"The chamber was here long before the arcade was," Luna answered with a sniff. "When this street was first being developed, I managed to land myself in the lead contractor's house. He kept all his paperwork at home. It was a simple matter of making sure they didn't dig too deep...and making some blueprint modifications when he wasn't looking, to accommodate the entrance beneath the games."

The thought of a cat with a sketcher's pencil above layers and layers of gridlined onionskin paper was too much for even Usagi's imagination. But she'd seen Luna do odder things, she supposed.

"Come on, Usa, stop stalling," Rei snipped. Usagi scowled and walked over to where she and Ami were by the medical bed. She hoped on, reclining with crossed arms and a pout while the others went to gather around Luna, talking about some sort of readout or data stream or something.

Ami seemed to know what some of the equipment was. Usagi just sat in sulky silence as her friend waved beeping wands over her, attached tiny silver nodes that blinked red and green on her temples, over her heart, another on her side, one at the base of her neck, another at the base of her spine. She was cool and unrevealing the whole time- a true future doctor, Usagi thought with a scowl.

"Oh stop pouting," Rei rolled her eyes. "It's not that bad."

"You guys worry too much," Usagi muttered. "I could be home, asleep..." And God was she tired. She hadn't slept since...since crying herself to sleep after he'd left, the night before. Luna had woken her around nine am, and she'd spent the rest of the day at Makoto's, explaining what had happened, trying to keep them from suspecting she didn't feel as violated or terrorized as she should. And now they were here. And she was exhausted, and cranky, and she wanted nothing more than to see him again and demand explanations... She sniffed.

"You all right, Usagi?" Ami asked gently. Rei had gone over to the others at one of the consoles, the glass screen hung before them all illuminated with what looked like a layout of the city.

"I'm fine," Usagi grumbled, blinking away the tears that threatened to well up. "It's just cold in here."

Ami patted her shoulder.

Abruptly, the quietness of the room and the soft discussion of the girls and Luna was slashed to shreds by the sudden explosion of klaxons ringing out in the room. In reality, the alarm wasn't all that loud- but when compared to the uneasy silence it had pierced, it was deafening. Usagi shrieked and half fell off the bed, Ami jumped and dropped the electronic pad she'd been scribbling on with a metal stylus. The Senshi all jumped, too- Luna was fit to be a Halloween decoration, back arched, eyes wide, teeth bared and tail impersonating an inflated pipe cleaner.

"Spirits, does that happen when we're not here?" Rei demanded, fist clenched at her side to keep it from rising back up to where it had been clutching her heart.

"No," Luna said, fighting to smooth her tail with one fore-paw while poking at various controls with her other.

"What is it?" Makoto peered at the screen- the least technologically savvy of the girls, even she didn't like what she thought she saw- coalesced around a point in the northeastern corner of the city, red dots were gathering rapidly. "I hope that's not what I think it is."

"It's exactly what it looks like," Minako said tersely.

"It's faint..." Luna pawed at some knobs. "But definitely there. If we hadn't been at Central Control, we might not have picked it up."

"No time to look a gift horse in the mouth," Usagi said firmly. "Senshi, henshin!"

As if they'd been working togethr for years, they raised their hands high, calling their own wands to grasp amid swirls of their respective colors and elements. When lights and flames, snow, petals, ribbons faded, the five human girls had been replaced with five feminine forms that while remained humanoid in appearance, couldn't be mistaken for truly human by anyone but a blind man.

"Let's go," Sailor Moon said, all too happy to get out of more tests. If Ami hadn't found anything, she wasn't going to- and she couldn't help the little thrill at what that meant.

Endymion really had healed her- nothing more, nothing less. Sure, he wanted her alive for further questioning. But it didn't make sense for him to pass up the opportunity to do more... And yet he did.

She put thoughts of her estranged almost-boyfriend aside when they reached the area that had been indicated on the map, a small abandoned warehouse that ws currently full to bursting people of all ages and walks of life, all of them clothed in shades of black, red, white, neon greens and pinks. Smoke of various sources poured out from the shattered windows and buckled metal doors. The closer they got, the louder the deep, heart-thrumming bass got and the- it was a rave.

Crouched on the rooftop of a nearby industrial building, they watched people come and go- and they weren't screaming. At least, not in terror.

"Have any of you ever been to a rave?" Venus asked, dead serious. Mutely, the other four shook their heads. The blonde cringed.

"Why isn't anyone running?" Mars frustration was visible as she glowered at the strings of scantily clad women and overly dressed men below as they trickled to and from the discreet entrances.

"No attacks," Mercury said, sounding puzzled. "The dark signature is still in there, but...it's steady. No surges; no attacks. The ravers don't know what's among them."

"The freak probably blends right in." Jupiter sniffed uncharacteristically- it wasn't like her to look down on a stereotype, but the look she was giving those below as they passed was decidedly condescending.

"Sailor Moon, do you have your Luna Pen?" Venus asked suddenly. Moon blinked at her.

"Of course," she said. Truth be told, she normally didn't...

"Will it work on multiple targets? We need to get down there, find the youma, lure it out without alerting it. If a battle breaks out inside, a lot of people are going to get hurt."

Honestly, she had no idea if it would work- she'd never thought about it. She frowned. But...

"I'll make it work," she said with conviction. What use was this infinite power within her, if she couldn't make a stupid pen disguise more than one person? From a pocket somewhere on her person, she produced the pen, raising it high. As loud as she dared she commanded, "Luna Pen! Make us look like bitchin' ravers!"

She felt the power of the pen lurch as it had begun to ready to obey, then stall as it seemed to register the plural. Like a cheap economy car struggling to go up a hill too steep, she felt the magic of the pen strain, and begin to crack.

Then she touched it with a thread of power from the Crystal.

White light flared around all five figures. By the time the crowds below glanced up, startled by the sudden light, five young women in shades of black and neon stood. The flash was dismissed as a freak lightning bolt on a warm, balmy night. Sailor Moon glanced at herself, then at her friends- their garb was still faintly reminiscent of their Senshi fuku, with short skirts, knee high boots, snug bodices and sheer gloves of fishnet or lace. Their faces were still faintly obscured by the magic of their now invisible tiaras. For once, such an oddity would likely not be noticed, not if the amount of fog pouring out of the doors was any indication.

"Allright," Venus said. "Since I'm the only one that's been to a rave," she ignored the questioning glances. "Here's what you do- don't make eye contact, always look like you're a little out of it, keep moving, and if someone tries to come on to you, look like you're about to puke all over them." She paused. "Don't assume it'll always be a guy, either."

Mars snickered.

"Lets go," Sailor Moon glanced down, waited until no one was looking, and leaped down to the ground, four other streaks following her down. When they'd landed, she murmured so just they could hear, "Mars, take the east part of the building- Jupiter, west. Venus you take south, and I'll get North, the back of the building. Mercury, lounge outside, monitor the energy signal and contact us if you detect anything."

With only nods as acknowledgement, the girls dispersed, heading for different entrances.

_____________________

Endymion was furious.

The youma he'd selected had failed him before she'd even begun- she'd assured him she was the mistress of hiding energy signals, that she'd be long gone and done with her work before the Senshi ever detected her. He had believed in her supposed skill- it had taken Metallia's insistence to make Beryl let him have her.

Yet somehow, there they were. He watched as the five of them, in disguises that were pathetic to anyone who'd seen them as often and as close up as he had, leaped down and casually dispersed, obviously to try and pinpoint the curiously inactive youma.

Endymion was getting supremely tired of having to change his plans.

"Zenza, come to me."

The faintest ripple of putrid air behind him. "Yes, my lord?"

"You failed already."

Palpable hostility- an offended huff. "My lo-"

"The Senshi are here."

Stunned silence. "But, that's imposs-"

"You doubt my eyesight?"

"Never, Lord!"

"I will distract them. Under no circumstances are you to leave until the final energy needed is gathered, do you understand? I guarantee, any death they grant you will be a mercy compared to what pain I will extract from your flesh should you abandon your mission."

"I understand." The determination, underlined with fear, in her voice earned her a brisk nod. By the time she vanished, his armor and cloak had melted away into a simple ensemble of black pants and tunic with long, loose sleeves bound at the wrists. Loose sleeves were quite condusive to hiding several daggers strapped to one's forearms.

With a ripple of blue-black energy, he vanished from the rooftop, and in a mirror swirl of power he melted into existence in a deep shadow overlooking the catwalks and tiers that in turn looked down on the make-shift dance floor below, and the hurriedly constructed stage of plywood and scaffolding.

A normal human would never had been able to spot her in the seething, undulating mass of human bodies. The throbbing, pulsing lights of brightly contrasting colors made the task a challenge even for him. The music made it impossible to pick out her voice, should she speak, even for him.

But he could _feel_ her.

He closed his eyes, breathing in deep the smell of sweat, liqueur, smoke, and sex.

And the faintest, oh so briefest trace of _her_. It was not so much a scent, at least not the kind a nose could detect, but as it was sense. An aroma for his mind, so alien in its purity, so fascinating for its strength, something not often found in conjunction with such innocence.

And then, there she was. In a brief flash of yellow light from the strobes duct-taped in place above, her face was turned up to him, not looking at him, but blue eyes -turned green from the yellow light- searching the shadows. Searching for her enemy, searching for a fight. That suited him- he was itching for a fight, as well. Just, a different type.

Prowling forward out of the shadows, he descended a set of rickety, rusting steps down into the crowd. Now that he'd found her, it was easy to follow her even without having her in his sight. He wondered how humans, deaf as they were to the deeper hum of power in the world, could manage to be blind to her. She glowed, to his minds eye, a brilliant star against the blackness of the room. So utterly interesting. Would that light dim, in his world? Or would it persevere? Would it retain its strength, but change to his own darkness? Would it adapt? Would _she_ adapt?

He suddenly found himself infinitely impatient to find out.

Then he reached her, and his mind was occupied with things more of the present than the future.

____________________

He was here.

Heart racing, she forced herself to admit it. Soon after she'd entered, she'd felt it, to the tips of her boots.

Endymion was nearby.

She shoved aside a myriad of conflicting emotions- excitement, fear. Wanting, resistance. Nausea, lust... She buried it all, best as she could, fully aware she was not the kind of person who was skilled at controlling their emotions. But she tried her best, continuing to scan the crowd looking for someone not human, stretching her senses as far as she could. She could feel the pinpricks of light in the back of her mind, her Senshi, scattered around where she'd instructed.

She ignored the caressing sensation at the back of her neck that was the fifth person on her mental radar.

Venus had been right to wince at the realization that none of them had experience with raves or clubs- Sailor Moon was having a hard time not being swallowed whole by the mindless mass. The music, despite not being to her taste, somehow pulled at her, demanding and coaxing. More than once she found herself swaying as she walked. She had no exposure to drugs, previously- the past five minutes had more than made up for the rest of her sheltered high school career. Pupils of varying sizes stared at her unnervingly as she shoved her way through the crowd. Hands touched her places that, if she could find the owner, would have warranted a good Senshi kick on the spot. The unnerving thing was, she couldn't be certain how many of those caresses were intentional or a simple byproduct of cramming so many people in one area.

And the smells! Everyone was coated in sweat. Most were smoking or had recently smoked various things- most of them not sold on corner stores. Little bottles of pills were being passed around, several of them making their way into Sailor Moon's hands before she shoved them onto someone else, wiping her hands on her short, pleated black skirt as if the motion absolved her of the guilt of passing them on. There was another smell she couldn't quite place, and it was nearly as strong as the smoke and sweat. It wasn't until she passed a tiny girl, legs wrapped around the hips of a man far too old for her, both of them grunting and moaning as he bounced her up and down against his pelvis, that she realized what that smell was. Passing them, a wave of the scent hit her stronger than before, and it was obvious it came from them- the cloying, heady aroma of sex.

Blushing furiously, desperately trying to keep her mind on the mission and not let it implode from utter, crushing embarrassment, Sailor Moon moved on.

Perhaps, if she hadn't been distracted by the sudden shock of seeing public sex for the first time, she would have sensed him coming closer. As it was, she didn't- and it wasn't until he had a knife pressed to her spine that she came back to her senses with a jolt.

Breath, warm and moist on the side of her face- his voice, whispering. "Come with me."

Hand with the knife at her back, his other hand in her hair, teasing a damp strand loose. She knew what they looked like, with him touching her so, and her quick breath, intense expression. Now that she knew how immodest people were at these things, she had no trouble imagining the goals of other couple's she'd seen moving quickly through the crowd to secluded corners. Some, she thought remembering the bouncing couple, didn't even bother with the secluded part.

Somehow, he found a hidden place. Behind the stage -which she was certain would collapse to splinters any moment- beneath a low, rickety platform that was part of a set of steps going up- a section of the stairs was completely missing, a tangled and rusted pile of metal to the side telling her where it had gone, and explaining why it wasn't being used. Above them, the walkways and narrow platforms were crowded with more throngs of people. It was nearly pitch black.

He pushed her towards the wall, and she fought to keep from tripping, turning to face him as she planted a hand on the wall to keep herself upright. He stood, glinting knife in hand, illuminated by the brief flashes of the strobe lights, what little reached past the stage's backdrop. In those brief flashes, she saw that his eyes were still black, his face still pale and more gaunt than she remembered.

"Mamoru..." How he heard her, she wasn't sure. It was so loud, and she'd barely breathed the name. But his shift in expression made it obvious he had. But she was puzzled- he didn't move to grip her harshly, didn't raise the knife, didn't glare at her.

He smiled.

"So persistent," he said, and somehow she could hear him. Senshi hearing? She'd never tested it in this sort of environment. How useful, a remote part of her mind thought briefly.

He moved towards her, and she pressed herself back against the wall. Why didn't she run? Fight? She could. She should.

She didn't.

He planted his hands on the wall, on either side of her shoulders. The knife was gone, and he was still grinning, head tilted, examining her.

"You're not afraid this time."

Oh contraire, she thought. She was petrified- that was part of the problem.

But not of him.

She was absolutely terrified of the curl of warmth unfurling in her lower belly, of the way her heart beat decidedly not the same as it did when engrossed in a fight for her life.

"You won't hurt me." What else could she say? She couldn't admit she was truly afraid- he knew she wasn't afraid of him. It wouldn't make sense for her to claim a fear she didn't have.

He tilted his head, eyes searching hers. "But I already did." He lowered one hand, stepping closer, and gripped her hip- the one that had been so harshly bruised. "Did you forget already?"

"Bruises." She lifted her chin, as much to keep looking at him as to express defiance. "Those don't count."

"There was more than bruises." His other hand went to her shoulder, pushing aside the thin triple strap of her bodice, tracing light fingers against her skin- where the gash from the shattered glass had been.

He leaned down, and pressed his lips to her shoulder. Lips slightly parted, his tongue darted out to taste the flesh there- salty, smooth, goosebumped despite the moist heat that permeated the building.

She'd let her head fall back against the brick wall. Oh, sweet spirits... What was wrong with her?

She planted her hands on his chest, and shoved. He moved, but not because of her push. He raised his head, looking down at her with keen amusement.

"You fight me."

"No _duh_!" She hissed.

"But I thought I was this 'Mamoru,' this friend who tormented you, yet you seem to care for..." His hand moved from her shoulder, to trace the shape of the shadows the floating stairs to their left was casting on her face. She shied away from his touch, though he felt her subtle shiver.

"And I thought you kept arguing that you weren't Mamoru!" She snipped back, fighting back tears. So, he'd traded the game of pain and fear for this? Her heart hurt bad enough to overcome the deep-seated longing that had begun to grow in her belly- almost.

"Perhaps I am," he said, and his grin was wicked. Oh yes, he was playing with her. She balled her fists, swallowed harshly, staring at him with unblinking eyes.

"Either kill me, fight me, or go away." Through grit teeth, the words sounded more like the petulant demands of a child than the chilly ultimatum she'd intended.

"I think not," he responded simply, the hand on her hip roaming down, and behind. With a gasp she slammed her buttocks back against the wall, blocking his hand. She glowered, ice in her gaze. He laughed, and abruptly dipped his head down again. She froze, but he didn't touch her- he trailed his nose precariously close to her skin, up her neck, around her ear, stopping beside her temple as he breathed in, deeply, slowly. "I have something else in mind," he whispered.

Against the backdrop of darkness around them, it barely showed- she was only able to see it because he was so close. He began to eminate that dark blue-black power, the same she faintly remembered being used when he'd attacked her in her room.

The Senshi! Mercury was sure to pick up on the signal...

A sharp stab of fear nailed her in the belly, piercing that knot of desire that had been slowly tightening. Did he mean to lure them all to one spot? Was there some trap here, under these stairs, he'd yet to spring?

She was distracted, she told herself later- it was the only excuse she could cling to, the only explanation. And she needed an explanation, because otherwise that meant that when he abruptly gripped her head by her hair, pulling it back to expose her face fully to his, she'd _wanted_ the harsh kiss that had descended. Wanted the way his mouth demanded entrance, and the way she'd given it readily, the way she'd fought back not with fists or kicks or Senshi powers, but with her own mouth, pushing back as hard as he was pushing against her.

She was inexperienced.

She learned fast.

Hands found their way up into his hair, knotting her slender fingers in the dark curls, yanking his head to the side with enough force that would have potentially scalped a normal person. He only laughed, pushing her harder against the wall, crushing her with both his body and his mouth. His other hand roamed- if his lips hadn't been so mind-occupying, she might have balked at how his fingers flitted beneath the hem of her skirt, palm splaying against her hip and fingers wrapping around to dig sharply into the soft flesh of her rounded rear.

Yes...she'd been distracted...the only explanation...

She lost herself in him, knowing she would hate herself later.

_________________________

"Venus! Mars, Jupiter!"

"What is it, Mercury?" Mars' voice came back over the communications link, glowering at a couple that drunkenly stumbled into her path, eyeing her up and down and making gestures of invitation.

"There's a spike! In Sailor Moon's area, up by the stage, but she's not responding!"

"Damn. On our way. You'd better get in here, Mercury." Jupiter's voice was terse.

Venus ignored the sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach- why did she have this foreboding feeling? Last time she'd had it, Endymion had been revealed and murdered- or kidnapped, as the case had turned out.

She got to the stage the same time the others did. She could barely see them between the closely crammed bodies that thrashed and flailed in rough sincronization with the wordless screaming blaring from the speakers. With barely discerned signals, they began moving around to the back, where they too could now sense a dark presence.

Venus rounded the thing first- behind the stage was suspiciously void of throbbing bodies, save for two pairs of legs sticking out from beneath the stage, unmoving- a red thong was hooked around one ankle. She barely noticed- something else had her attention.

"Get away from her!" Her lasso was in hand, the golden glow illuminating the tall, broad figure of Endymion- it had to be him. That sensation, that silhouette- it had to be him.

And it was. He turned- with his hair in disarray, pupils barely as big as pinpricks, a frenzied glaze over his black gaze and a slow, utterly amused smile on those darkened lips, he looked more like a minion of the Dark Kingdom than she'd ever thought to imagine. Her blood turned to ice in her veins.

"I think I'd rather not." He turned back to Sailor Moon, slumped against the wall, looking dazed and confused. With one smooth movement, he swept the princess up into his arms, still grinning with a slightly insane twitch to his lips.

"You put her down, dark scum!" Mars emerged, gasping, panting, looking more enraged than Venus ever remembered seeing her. For a moment, she was more afraid of what Mars might do if they failed to rescue Sailor Moon than what would happen to their fight against the Dark Kingdom.

Endymion threw his head back, and roared with laughter. He looked like a man who'd been delivered everything he wanted. Nervously, Venus wondered if he had.

Mercury, Jupiter on her heels, came running around the corner, skirt fluttering up as she moved.

"Hey!" Jupiter balled her fists, clenched tight enough that the white knuckles were visible even through the sheer fishnet of her gloves. Before she could echo Mars' demand, Endymion turned to where a swirl of blue-blackness had begun to form at chest level.

"Stop him! It's a portal!" Mercury gasped, visor on her face obscuring her eyes with rapid lines of data.

Jupiter charged, but Endymion -laughing- only stepped to the side, and disappeared through the portal, taking a half-conscious Sailor Moon with him. Without hesitation, Jupiter changed direction, barreling straight for the portal. Mars was almost immediately behind her.

"No, stop! The portal, it shift-" Mercury and Venus both raced forward to stop them, but it was too late. The portal flashed red a split moment before Jupiter and Mars leaped through, then vanished with an audible snap.

Frozen where they had come up short, the remaining two Senshi stared at where their friends had vanished.

Blinking numbly, Venus asked, "Where did they go?"

Mercury swallowed. "He took her to the Dark Kingdom- I'm sure of it. The readings I got through that portal..."

A heavy pause. Screaming had begun, behind them, on the other side of stage. Cackling laughter rose above it all.

"Mars? Jupiter?"

Voice deadened, Mercury replied, "I don't know."

The screaming got louder.

To be continued.

_____________________

Officially the longest chapter so far. :-) Hope you enjoyed. I think this is my personal favorite out of what I have planned. Review, please! I usually don't ask, but I've had a bad week and they always make me feel better. :-P

-Amber


	5. Chapter 5

**_Obsession_**

_Amber Penglass_

**Chapter 5  
**

**__________________________**

**WARNING: This chapter contains explicit adult content. **

It's at the very end. Once you reach the '****' stop reading if you don't want to read nummy monkey sex, and you won't miss anything pertinent to the story.

**____________________________  
**

She had failed.

Her duty, her purpose- worst of all, she'd failed Serenity. While Minako was distraught over Usagi's capture, it was nothing compared to the deep-seated bitterness Venus felt. The leader of the Senshi of the Silver Millennium was furious, dejected, stunned, and hopeless all at once. She wondered if this was what Usagi had felt after seeing the body of her beloved Mamoru taken up by Kunzite, thinking she had failed to resurrect him with the Ginzishou, the Silver Illusion Crystal- that stone, that they'd sought for, killed for, sweated and bled for. That little thing... And it had been in her, all along.

All it had taken to bring it out was the death of her soulmate.

Obviously, though, something of what had happened had worked- because he was alive, albeit evil, and currently in possession of the Princess. And, whether he knew it or not, the Ginzishou as well. The two things they'd fought and nearly died, over and over, to keep from the Dark Kingdom...and now they had them both. And it was her fault- because she was the leader. And she had failed.

Venus was having a really shitty day.

___________

In the few moments it had taken Mercury and Venus to gather themselves and fight the bitch draining the rave attendees, the youma had gathered enough dark energy to open yet another portal, one through which a blast of energy came. It was unlike anything they'd ever sensed- it had short-circuited Mercury's data computer before sweeping over the crowd, freezing everyone and everything it touched in blocks of heavy, murky ice.

"Are they...?" Venus wasn't sure she wanted to know.

"Dead," Mercury said, voice hoarse. "No human could survive being flash-frozen like that." If Mars had still been there...fire certainly would have been useful.

They left the body of the youma where it lay- without Sailor Moon's pure power to finish it off, the body remained twisted and contaminated.

Outside, there was no end in sight to the frozen wave. Nothing moved. Nothing made a sound- the entire city slept. All the world slept, encased in ice, as far as they knew.

"Doesn't make sense," Mercury said. "Why try to conquer the world, if there's nothing alive to conquer?"

"It's not about ruling," Venus replied. "It's not about getting to wear the big hat and make the rules- it's about destruction. Death. Despair. It's about ending everything, just because you can." Mercury shuddered- part of her didn't like that Venus seemed to understand such motivations so easily.

"Let's get to Central- Luna should have been shielded from the effects of the wave by the shield." She leaped, careful of the ice that coated everything. Mercury followed, desperately hoping Luna had an idea as to what to do now.

_____________

She was comfortable- sinfully so.

Something told her she shouldn't be. Something, in the back of her mind, screamed at her to wake up, to remember, to fight and flee.

She ignored it. How long had it been, since she'd been comfortable? Her own bed was scarcely better than a tub of rocks. How long had it been, since she could truly forget? She knew there was something...she fought to keep it buried beneath the hazy fog of sleep.

Eventually, it wasn't her own conscience that prodded her to open her eyes- it was the eyes.

Slowly, fear creeping under her skin, she opened her own eyes, and beheld darkness. She blinked, trying to see. As her eyes adjusted, she moved her fingers, her toes, shifting her weight. She was in a bed- a large bed, so deeply cushioned to be as a cloud, enveloping and warm. Silk covered her, smooth against her skin. Awake now, she could feel her breath slightly constricted, and her hands brushed against her torso to feel not the sleek satin of her fuku bodice, but warm, soft, supple leather encasing her ribs, her breasts.

She could see, now- faintly make out the shape of sharp, teeth-like stalagtites hanging overhead. No eyes peering down at her. But- she felt them.

Slowly, she sat up, letting the silk blanket fall down around her hips. The leather bodice, even snug as it was, moved with her like a second skin. Her hand went to her throat, her ears, and found a heavy, wide collar of knuckle-sized stones. In the dark, she couldn't tell what they were. Her ears, too, dripped with heavy adornments. Woven into her hair, spilling around her like muted sunshine, were strings of crystals. They fell against one another, letting a faint tinkle of music echo in the chamber.

The walls were rough stone, soaring pillars carved into them. The floor was smooth, polished squares of blackest marble. The bed sat on a platform, its four posters high enough that she could hardly make out their tops. She'd been right, she saw now- the bed was huge, the silk coverings colored a deep indigo.

There was a doorway- of sorts. No actual doors, just a grand archway, supported by two ornate pillars. Sheer drapes fluttered down between them, moving in a nonexistent breeze. A sheer panel flitted aside, and Usagi saw who had been watching her. A woman, tall and formed in the very essence of womanhood. Hair red as blood cascaded around her, hugging her almost as closely as the amythest gown she wore. She held a tall staff, topped with an orb of shifting colors. Her eyes were slitted, catlike, and full of darkest hate.

A memory...the briefest of recollections... A woman, a servant, redhair and purple eyes...hiding behind a pillar, spying on her prince, and his forbidden princess... Again, in the palace...the angry mob destroying, killing, plundering... Above it all, a woman's voice... _'Prince! You would betray us? For _her_?'_

Usagi gasped, falling forward, one hand planted in the silk sheets to keep herself from collapsing, the other digging into her scalp as she stared, eyes locked on the woman, and she remembered.

"Beryl..."

___________________

_~You have brought her. But not to me.~_

The menace was evident, and Endymion knew he was meant to tremble. _~Bring her to me!~_

Even with the energy flowing steadily from the portal that had been opened directly above the massive gateway, Metalia was still not yet powerful enough to become coporeal. If the Leader wanted the Princess here, it needed Endymion to fetch her. Which, temporarily, gave him some bargaining power. He had no delusions about how far he could take it- soon, this evil would be free, and have no need of him. He needed to ensure that he was useful, enough so to outweigh any disrespect he showed now.

"You mean to make the Earth a place of death," he said. He'd felt Beryl release the freezing spell. "While I don't particularly object, I must point out that if you kill everyone, you'll have no one left to support your need for energy. You will fade, and there will be no one left to stumble upon your prison, no one fo you to manipulate, no one to gather more energy for you- no one to gather energy _from_."

_~Fool. You think to educate _me_? That is why I need the Maboroshi no Ginzishou! With it, I can sustain myself for eternity... I can spread throughout the known galaxies, and swallow them whole!~_

Pity. That wasn't at all what he had in mind.

"I wasn't aware the Ginzishou had been found," he said slowly. "Do you intend to search each human on Earth, one by one, while they are frozen?"

_~Twice a fool- but Beryl was worse, to hinder you so. Without your memories of what transpired on that day, on that Tower, your head is emptied to uselessness.~ _The energy from the portal began to wane, even as he frowned, fighting confusion. Beryl? Beryl had taken his memories? It made no sense, why hobble her own warrior in such a way? Metalia laughed, a sound void of anything remotely human or mortal.

Without warning, a black, clawed hand shot out from beneath the door, and griped his head in a vice. Claws dug into his ears, his nose, his mouth, his eyes, sinking into his mind. He struggled, instinctively, against the vision that was thrust into his mind.

...High..they were up high... A woman, slender, immortally beautiful- she shone, as if a star had buried itself in her breast. Someone, a man, lay in her lap- they floated, surrounded by her glow, her silvered hair a mist around them, her frothy white gown a cloud that they rested upon. Her hands moved away from clutching at the man, his face a blur to Endymion's sight. The woman, she arched, crying out- tears glistened on her face, the golden crescent mark flashing a rapid tempo, in sync with the glittering drop that floated between her hands. As he watched, the crystal grew, solidified, and flashed brilliantly enough that he knew if he had truly been present in this vision, he would have been blinded. Through the fading light, he could make out the slightest outline of something breaking off from the crystal, and falling...into the man...

_~Get me the Maboroshi no Ginzishou!~_

_______________________

She couldn't breathe- the bodice became a vice that clenched her til her ribs groaned and her heart fought for room to beat, her lungs for room to expand. She clawed the necklace off her throat, snapping delicate clasps and links, trying to suck oxygen down her throat. The woman -Beryl- hadn't moved a hair, hadn't blinked, didn't look like she'd drawn a breath.

Spots began to dance across her vision. The wheezing, gasping noise coming from her mouth slowed, and faded to silence. Her eyes went from bulging to falling slowly shut.

_He brought me here to die?_ She was surprised she was capable of coherent thought. What was the point? So this woman could kill her? Endymion... Mamo-chan...

She wasn't even immediately aware, at first, that she could breathe again. Her body took over, breathed without her telling it to. Slowly, one by one, her senses returned, even though she had no recollection of actually passing out. When her vision blinked back into her control, she was still bent over on the bed, fingers clutching the silk sheets, other hand still grasping her throat. She realized the hoarse rasping that echoed in the silent room was her own. She blinked, trying to clear her bleary eyes, looking back to the woman-

"Mamo-chan," she coughed, making to leap out of the bed, and only succeeding in collapsing, tripping over the sheets that tangled with her long, sheer skirts, turning an ankle as she stumbled over the edge of the dais.

"Stay, Sailor Moon." The voice was cool, detatched, distracted. She lay on her side, pushing herself up on her arms as she stared wide-eyed at the dark haired man who held a long broadsword to the throat of the redhead.

"You dare-!" Beryl's outcry was cut off as the sword tip pressed deeper, drawing a drop of blood. It welled, and rolled down the long line of her pale throat to disappear between the deep valley of her cleavage.

"Obviously, you've been left out of the loop. My Queen." The last was added almost as if he had decided to leave it off. He glanced away from Beryl, to where Usagi lay, staring wide eyed, not understanding, not sure she wanted to. Endymion had saved her...and yet she felt anything but rescued.

"Metalia wants her. Alive, for the time being." He lowered his sword, clearly not considering Beryl a threat. The woman quivered with barely contained fury.

"You think you know what our Great Leader-"

"Go ask for yourself." He held her gaze levelly. Cold black eyes reflected furious yellow, without emotion, without any interest at all. Beryl visibly rolled his words over in her mind, examining them. If he spoke truth, and Metalia had chosen to favor him with more information than herself, then it was in Beryl's best interest to go along. If not... She reached out one clawed hand, and stroked one claw down the side of his face. It was not the usurption that bothered her; it was that he had not told her, as she believed he would do, as she believed she'd made him loyal and devoted enough to do, no matter the threat.

"Endymion...you were mine... Where did I go wrong?" For the briefest, most transparent of moments...there was true sorrow beneath the monster's voice. A remnant of the woman that had ceased to exist eons ago.

Endymion stepped aside, his manner clearly dismissing. In a macabre, reversed echo of how things had been long, long ago -sovereign and subject- Beryl turned, and left without another word.

Usagi realized she'd been holding her breath, not making a sound- not even blinking. Endymion turned to her, sword lowered to almost touching the ground. The floor was so highly polished, a near perfect mirror image of him reflected off of it. If she reached out, stretched, she could have touched the reflection of his hair with her fingertips.

"Interesting," he said finally. She blinked- a sharp intake of breath broke the silence that followed his statement. She looked at him with confusion.

"Mamo-chan...Endymion... Why are you doing this? Don't you recognize me? It's me, Serenity... Why don't you remember?"

He approached, falling into a crouch before her, sword held across his knees. He reached out one hand, cupped her chin with surprising gentleness.

"Dear Usagi...have you forgotten already my midnight visit?" His grip tightened, and yanked her face closer, throwing her off balance. Her hands slapped against the marble floor to keep from loosing her balance entirely, palms stinging from the impact. "I don't remember anything." He tilted his face, regarding her, as if seeing her for the first time. "Although, I confess, enemy-mine, I am coming to believe you have nothing to do with that."

"I didn't! You have to believe me!" Tears threatened to flow. Why, oh why had she let her guard down at the warehouse? And where was she now, anyway? The putrid scent on the air, the scent that her nose didn't smell, but her heart did... The sticky darkness, the oily, murky presence that coated everything. It clung to her nose, the inside of her throat, coated her mouth and made swallowing a distasteful task.

He let his hand wander down her throat. A wire thread, a single black diamond still clinging to it, hung down around her neck to trail into the cleft of her cleavage. He hooked a finger around it, lifting it away from her chilled skin.

"This was very old, you know." He took one of her hands, her left one, and she shifted her weight to keep from falling. Slowly, deliberately, he began twining the dark silver around her finger, twisting and looping it so that the diamond was fixed on top. "If this is how you treat my gifts, I will not be pleased."

He stood abruptly- he'd left the end of the wire out, and it poked her palm as she clenched her hand into a fist to hide its trembling.

"Come," he said, holding one his hands out and down to her. Hesitating, she reached up, and put her hand in his.

So cold.

He yanked her up, wrenching her shoulder, and she stifled a cry. She was in her mortal form- her transformation and disguise had faded at some point, most likely because her brooch was gone. How had she failed to notice it right off? She wasn't Sailor Moon, or the princess now- she was plain ol' Usagi. Human, and weak. And without her brooch, she was going to stay that way. True fear began to wiggle its way into her heart.

He took her out of the bedchamber, and into a hall that was almost more like a tunnel. A large underground tunnel, but a hall lined with fluted pillars, the high ceiling dotted with massive crystal chandeliers. Elegance and murk.

From the shadows, things creeped, hissing and spitting at her. Eyes peered at her from dark recesses, and she was very aware of her defenseless state. One or two dared show themselves, glaring at the human presence. Glaring at the one responsible for so many of their fellows' demise.

"A new pet, highness?" The voice was barely feminine, old and decidedly evil. A shape like a bowed old woman toddled from the shadows, her mask painted like an ancient traditional demon. She licked her lips at Usagi, laughing. Black lightning crackled at her fingertips.

"Begone, Yaza." He said simply, clearly expecting to be obeyed- and he was. Yaza retreated, hissing at Usagi. She gasped when Endymion unexpectedly yanked her forward to walk beside him, rather than behind where he'd been pulling her along. She fell against his side, balance compromised by the sudden pull. He released her hand to grab the edge of his cloak, pulling it around her til only her head peeked out from beneath his arm and cloak. The movement reeked of possessiveness, rather than protection.

Together they walked, Endymion leading them to the biggest cavern Usagi had ever seen. She didn't have time to do more than gape a moment, before he'd led her up onto a tall platform, easily twice as tall as she was, and behind a large, ominous stone throne. She didn't even blink when a portion of the wall melted- she did blink when Endymion let the cloak fall away to pick her up, skirts sliding up high on her thighs as he lifted her.

"You will be silent," he instructed. His tone was distracted, and that worried her more than anything. Never around her was he distracted. He was always intense, fixated. A tremor or fear struck her, and she wished more than ever for her henshin brooch. Her fists tightened around her arms- the end of the wire ring stabbed her shoulder as he carried her into darkness. Her other senses told her he was descending a set of stairs, although how he could possibly see in such absolute darkness was a mystery to her.

After a length of time, her eyes found a source of illumination- faint, and dark in its own way, but it showed her the faintest outline of what had to be a massive doorway. Red light oozed from the barest cracks beneath the doors and between the two halves of the gateway. When Endymion stepped down onto the platform that hosted the doors, he set her down on her feet and raised one hand. Blue fire crackled around his palms for a moment before the sparks flew to a handful of torches floating here and there- for her benefit, no doubt. Her certainly didn't need them if he'd been able to navigate those steps in the dark.

As if sensing them, the red light behind the door intensified. A low rumbling filled the air, and she felt Endymion stiffen. A growl, barely audible, grumbled in his throat. She looked up at him, eyes wide. His hand, on her arm, tightened possessively. He drew her behind him as he went forward, a look of concentration on his face. He visibly braced himself, drawing himself up and squaring his shoulders, spreading his feet. He looked like he was ready to launch into battle.

What in the world was behind that door?

An inkling of familiarity leaked into her consciousness. She'd been here before...or at least, somewhere similar. She'd smelled this stink of ancient, rotting power before. A long time ago...a very long time... But she couldn't quite remember... Not because it wasn't important, but because something was blocking the memory. Why this, out of everything she remembered? Why would she remember killing herself, remember the pain of a sword decimating her heart, but not this putridity? She half lost herself in trying to remember, and thus hardly noticed with a thick tendril of darkness oozed from beneath the doors. She didn't notice as Endymion moved in front of her in an unconscious echo of the same movement from so long ago- she did, however, notice when that thick arm of evil shot out, and struck her in the head.

"Metalia, no! She's not transformed- she's human! She can't!-"

_~She can.~ _That voice! Usagi knew that voice!

Then she forgot what else she knew, as she began screaming.

__________________________

Endymion was furious. It was like watching an older sibling torment your favorite pet, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. The screaming had stopped- at least, the sound had. Usagi, on her knees, was still contorted, body stiff and straining, head thrown back in a silent scream. Only the faintest rasping of air flowing over worn and exhausted vocal cords broke the silence. He clenched his fists tight enough to crush stone. He didn't care that he was far to enraged to hide the extent of his fury from Metalia- let the entity know how displeased her right-hand was.

"Enough!" He snarled. He saw the slight sheen of insanity that had begun to glaze those wide-open eyes. "Turning her to your desires will be futile if she's broken! I very much doubt the Ginzishou will bend to an insane woman!"

_~Again the fool.~_ Metalia's laugh -or what passed for laughter- pierced his mind._ ~You think my aim is to be beholden to the whims of this girl? To spend eternity coaxing her to my wishes?~ _The scorn was palpable. His jaw clenched as he stared at Usagi. Her back was arched, arms limp at her sides. Her head had fallen back, not supported at all. Blood trickled out of her ears and down the sides of her throat. A bead of more red had begun to well at one nostril, at the corner of her mouth- Metalia was killing her, slowly. At least, killing her mind. Scraping the insides bare of anything remotely resembling a mortal woman. A shell was all that would be left- a shell for Metalia to inhabit, control, a vessel through which she would be able to use the Ginzishou.

Somehow, Endymion didn't think it would work that way. The connection between Serenity and the Ginzishou was more than genetic, more than physical. He had no doubt that the moment Serenity ceased to be, even if the body wasn't truly dead, the Ginzishou would abandon her.

_~Almost...~_ The thick snakes of oily darkness wrapped around Usagi's slight form thickened, pulsed. The thickest one wrapped around her torso and lifted her up higher, out of the slump she'd slipped into. Another coiled around her head, pulling it up like an infant's. Endymion hissed at the empty eyes that gazed sightlessly at nothing. Those empty eyes... He hated them. He'd had plans for those eyes, the woman that inspired such curiosity. He hadn't been done with her... No, he hadn't nearly been finished, not with her, not with what he planned for her, certainly not with figuring out why she fascinated him so.

_~Yes~ _Metalia's hiss was the only warning. A cloud of red boiled out from beneath the door and rushed to Usagi, enveloping her and shoving her mouth open wide before diving in, into her mouth, nose, ears, coating her eyes with a sheen of blood red-

It was so abrupt, the light that exploded from Usagi's breast, that it took a moment for him to register that he'd been temporarily blinded. White light stabbed the back of his eyes- he cried out, throwing an arm over his face as he turned away, Metalia's shriek shredding his eardrums as well as making his thoughts ring painfully inside his skull.

When he looked back, blinking away white spots, he almost laughed. Serenity -not Usagi- lay sprawled amid a plenitude of sheer white silk skirts, silver hair spread around her in sleek coils. She was a vision of white and silver amid the darkness- except where Metalia's poison was still fighting to do its work. Her hair, at the roots, was inky black and fighting to work its way down through the rest of her locks. Her pale skin had a grey pallor around her mouth, her eyes, her ears- even her fingertips. Her lips themselves were stained black. He pondered that, briefly, before approaching her- would her eyes be black, as well? He knelt down on one knee beside her, reaching out one hand to brush his knuckles across a cool cheek, sweeping a silver curl off her face as he did so. Her head rolled towards him, her face looking up at his- she blinked her eyes open, those blue eyes still so intense, for all they were now the faintest, sheerest shade of ice blue where once they'd made sapphires despair. They were not empty, anymore- not entirely. And certainly not at all black. Interesting.

Metalia was still shrieking. It had taken a large portion of the energy gathered to do what had been done- and the damn thing had failed. The portal above the door, still funneling energy down, flickered as Metalia pulled more heavily on that flow of energy. He wondered if the creature was stupid enough to pull hard enough to buckle the portal.

_~Out! Get her out!~_ The command was barely discernible amid the other raging, torrential dousings of hatred and filth pouring from Metalia. With mild surprise he realized that Serenity was still glowing, her skin giving off the faintest white light. How interesting. It made his skin burn, slightly- more like the heat of a too-hot bath on cold-numbed skin than true pain. But to Metalia, far more saturated in evil than he could ever hope to be, even this faint presence of true light had to be infinitely painful.

Stowing away that bit of knowledge, Endymion lifted the light form into his arms, and conjured a portal straight into his chambers. Without a word to his liege, he stepped through and closed the portal behind him.

Metalia's raging became an annoyance at the back of his mind- for all they were close to freeing their Great Leader, Metalia's prison was still well insulated.

He was ready to explode from the amount of intense, urgent demands flooding his mind- demands to know, to understand, to possess. The power of this girl...half dead, nearly broken, very nearly insane, she had still utterly and completely defied one of the most powerful beings in existence- _while unconscious_! He stood, near the center of his rooms, staring down with something precariously close to awe at the form cradled in his arms. It was still the same girl who he had put in his bed, the same girl he'd wrapped in ribbons of his power to transform her clothes, still the same girl around whose neck he'd draped that ancient neckpiece- the same fragile, mortal girl whose finger bore that pointless wire ring.

And yet...

Like in the vision Metalia had shoved into his mind, she was completely different. Not human, certainly- though an untrained eye might not see it, might not see how her skin was faintly translucent, how her limbs were just too lithe, too graceful. How her hair seemed to nearly float on its own, how her features were just a slight amount too perfect, too symmetrical. How her heart beat a slightly different staccato than a human heart, or her lungs were bigger and drew deeper, more frequent breaths. The bits of darkness were still fighting to keep their foothold in the girl's body- her lip had faded from black to deepest wine red, the black in her hair and receded somewhat- the grey of her skin had nearly vanished, though what remained made her skin look near to death... Why was such a sight familiar to him?

Like a switch had been flipped, the obsession he'd felt for this frustratingly fascinating girl multiplied tenfold as he realized, forcefully, that he _knew_ her. And he had absolutely no idea how.

******

He'd been moving, slowly, as if in a trance towards the bed that was still covered with the twisted sheets she'd tangled in her scramble to get away from a incensed Beryl. He swept them aside with one arm, setting her down amid the pillows. His eyes never left her face, as if staring long enough would reveal the answer, would tell him why he'd been fixated, like a madman, on this creature. Why he felt he knew her, now that he'd seen her as she was meant to be. Why it bothered him to know that she was already his, had been before he'd decided to lay claim to her. And why, more powerfully than ever before, he _wanted_ her. It was more urgent than the need that had made him seek that cold dive in the cavern pools- power always gave him a hard-on. This was more than a power trip. This was possession. This was ownership, a need to _know_.

Her eyes opened, again. He was leaning over her, kneeling beside her on the bed. She blinked up at him, eyes void of fear or confusion. Full of trust, of things he couldn't name and didn't want to. He didn't want to see those eyes. Instead, he leaned in with a growl, and crushed her lips beneath his in a bruising mockery of a kiss. She gasped, lips parting, and he took advantage of the opening to deepen the kiss far beyond remotely innocent. One of his hands released the catch of his cloak, working at the buckles of his armor with practice and ease.

His other hand busied itself running up one long, impossibly slender leg, under silk skirts, gripping her left hip. His fingers massaged the soft flesh he found there, working the muscles of her upper thigh and hip. The last of his armor fell away, and he swung one leg over her, straddling her, slipping one arm beneath her to pull her up. Her arms came up to wrap around his neck, pulling him down- or pulling herself up, it was hard to tell. Both of his hands now free, he gripped the the back of her dress and pulled, snapping dozens of pearl buttons and silken loops. The patter of the things bouncing off the bed and scattering on the ground was the only sound to break into her moans and his growls. Impatient, he pushed the thing down around her waist, putting one hand between them, on her chest, and pushing her away, down into the pillows. She gave a cry, protesting the separation- the cry was laced with a growl of her own, and he saw with mild surprise that her lips were black again, flecks of darkness scattered throughout the blue of her eyes. Her skin was grey as death, and no longer glowing.

Slender fingers gripped his shirt, and ripped the thing. He shrugged out of the tattered garment, swooping down to capture one pert, perfect rose nipple between his teeth. She hissed and arched into him, fingers tangling his hair and pulling harshly. A sound that was half mewl half demanding snarl escaped her, and she yanked on his hair again. He responded by reaching up and delving his hand into her silver mane, gripping the silken lengths by their dark roots and pulling. She hissed, and he smiled down at the sight of her breasts pushed into the air, her head pulled back and neck exposed. Her fingers released his hair, pawed at his throat and chest.

He moved in again, mouth latching onto the junction at her throat and neck, biting- hard. She gave a cry, half pain, half confused want. His free hand, with a few feats of cleverness, freed the rest of her from her shredded dress, and himself from his trousers. Both completely bare, he released his grip on her scalp and throat, gripping her hips with both hands-

With a show of strength he didn't think her capable of, she sat up and planted her hands on his chest, shoving him onto his back. She straddled him, the heat of her center tantalizing close to his throbbing erection. She grinned down at him, the slight haze of almost-insanity still faintly present- brought back along with the flecks of blackness that had, by now, expanded to large patches. Her eyes were half blue, half black now. A part of him wished for those old blue eyes looking down at him, straddling him- those eyes he'd been so fixated on. The rest of him was insanely curious about this new persona, this wild, uncontrollable passion that came with the black.

He reached up and gripped her breasts, kneading and massaging. She threw her head back, letting out a long, low growl at the same time she grabbed his length with both hands. He jerked and gave a grunt, not expecting the contact. She felt his reaction, and laughed. Not the laugh he'd heard her share with her friends in the park, not even the laugh he somehow remembered from long ago- but a laugh of self-serving satisfaction, a laugh of amusement at his expense. Not her laugh.

He didn't want sounds from wherever that sound had come from- he wanted to make_ her_ scream, wanted _her_ to know who it was who had her in his grasp, who made _her_ cry out.

He gripped her around the waist, and flipped them over, settling himself between her thighs as her ankles hooked themselves at the small of his back. Without warning or preamble, he found her entrance, and plunged in. She arched in mingled pain and exquisite pleasure. He felt the warm flow of virgin's blood swell around him, and he ignored it, moving without pause, without slowing- withdrawing and taking, in and out, letting the sensations wash over him, building and intensifying.

Never, not once, had it come close to being like this with Beryl.

He didn't kiss her, and she didn't try to kiss him. She spasmed multiple times, tensing and shaking as wave after wave of intense ecstasy flooded every limb, and he laughed to see her cry out, to see her thrash and try to catch her breath. He didn't stop, not even when he reached his own crest and exploded, arching sharply and thrusting himself even deeper. He paused only long enough to grip her around the waist, pull her off him, and flip her over before falling down atop her, and taking her again. And again.

He didn't stop until he was drained of all energy- until both of them were. And he lay, spent, watching her as she slept. Watching her skin fade from grey back to its translucent white, watching the black bleed out of her lips and fade back to their faint pink. The black stayed in her hair- he didn't know if the black that had, at the end, enveloped her eyes entirely faded or not, seeing as her eyes were closed. He listened to her breathing, deep and even, and his fists clenched in the sheets.

Still, he wanted her. Spent as he was, he was not satisfied, for his true goal had eluded him- she was not his. Not truly. How he knew this, he wasn't sure. He just knew. This was not acceptable. She was his- he knew it, she knew it. And yet, there was a piece missing. What was it? Staring at her as she slept, he knew he'd no know rest until he found that answer.

_______________________

Bwahaha. Yes, I wrote a sex scene. A dirty sex scene, at that. I'm not paticularly fond of the virgin blood bit, BUT I've always thought Serenity would be a virgin, and it didn't make sense for Endymion not to notice that little fact. Still, I skipped over it as briefly as possible. I just didn't want you guys to think I was into that sort of thing, is why I mention it here.

For anyone preparing to have a hissy fit over it, I warned you all that there was going to be sex way back in the first chapter, AND I never made any attempts to mask what kind of fic this was going to be- dark, twisted, naughty, etc. Don't like it, tough shit, go cry somewhere else. Critiques on the actual sex scene itself is welcome- it's actually the first one I wrote intended to be read by someone other than myself. :-P

Hope you all enjoyed!

-Amber


	6. Chapter 6

**Obsession**

_Amber Penglass_

_**Chapter 6  
**_

________________________________

There was a voice in her head- it didn't speak to her in words, more emotions and concepts. It rejoiced. It sung and laughed and wallowed in the shreds of darkness it had managed to retain, wrapping itself in them like royal robes. It sat, and waited, and had every faith that things were going deliciously well, that everything was right and perfect. The world was at her fingertips, and all she had to do was reach out, and take it.

The rest of her thought it all had to be a dream- a horrible, terrifying dream. More of a nightmare, really. A soft ache spread throughout her body, as if she'd been remade again and again, every cell of her body torn away and rebuilt, only with something added...something foreign, something horrible and dark. Something, she knew with relief she had somehow managed to reject. Her insides felt raw and tender, like the pads of bare fingertips after pinching out a flame. Not burnt...but very near it. Something had burned her out, and she was feeling it now. Scorched her, from the inside out, a cleansing fire that had ebbed and smouldered as she slept. When she opened her eyes, she expected to find her surroundings smoking and blackened. And things were black, yes- but not from her.

She became aware of an exterior warmth, beside her. She blinked, eyes adjusting to the darkness. She turned her head, her neck weak- her head fell to the side, more than she guided it. She blinked at the broad back that was to her. Muscles shifted subtly under pale flesh as deep, sleeping breaths peppered the air with the sounds of soft exhalations. His right arm was bent back, laying behind him to grasp her wrist in a snug grip that told of possessiveness.

All at once, Usagi became aware of her nude state- the dampness between her legs, the way her hairline felt stiff with dried sweat, the musk that filled the air, the way the sheets were impossibly tangled.

Heat flooded her face. Her insides began to ache, where that heat spread down into her belly, touching places that had just barely begun to cool. Her hand, caught in Endymion's grip, began to tremble. She swallowed, blinking rapidly, harshly, trying to not think about what she didn't remember.

Usagi gently tugged her hand free of his, moving slowly- freezing when, once, he stirred, mumbled, then settled again. Holding her breath, Usagi slipped from the bed. She tried to take a sheet with her, giving up on it when she realized the other end of it was under Endymion. She found her dress on the floor- torn beyond use. Naked, every inch of her bearing evidence to the night's activities, Usagi went to Endymion's abandoned armor and cloak. She swung the heavy length of fabric around her shoulders, fixing the silver clasp beneath her chin. She slipped the thin stiletto dagger from his belt, hiding it among the folds of the cloak. She would have liked to take the sword, but it was nearly as large as she was. She pulled up the deep hood of the cloak, keeping it from falling forward over her face with one hand.

She hadn't meant to look back- that wasn't Mamoru. Maybe, somewhere inside...

But Mamoru would never have... She turned away from the thought, not sure if it was out of shame or delicious embarrassment.

She looked anyway. Just once. At the doorway, she looked over her shoulder, saw him laying there, his face obscured from her at the angle she stood at. Something tugged at her heart, something deep and twisted, because it tugged for the sake of this shade of Endymion and not for Mamoru, or even the true Endymion her memories held crystallized in her pure memory of him. Somehow, this evil echo of the man she loved meant something to her in his own way. It was wrong, and it was forbidden beyond anything she and her dead prince had shared. And yet, it was there.

Confused and frightened, Usagi stole out of the room and down the jagged corridors of stone and shadows. It felt as if she were walking down the gullet of some ancient, forgotten monstrosity. The shadows seemed to ebb and pulse with her as she moved, and that mocking, laughing presence in the back of her mind sang with them, called to them, asked their help in subduing her.

Usagi clasped her hands to her head, stifling a sob. What was wrong with her? She had to get out, get back to her Senshi, back to Luna and their plans and brightly lit meeting places, back to Makoto's cooking and Ami's books... Everything would be fine then. It had to be.

She realized she'd been following the same route that Endymion had taken her down the day before. Abruptly, she jerked herself down the first off-shooting corridor that presented itself, walking fast and breathing faster. Her mind was spinning, and she couldn't make it stop. She had to get out- but she had no idea how. She knew transforming would do no good, even if she could. Such a burst of power would only attract attention. So how did she get out of a place she knew nothing about?

She thought of how that mocking presence subdued in the back of her mind seemed to communicate with the very walls around her, hummed in sync with the shadows. She licked nervous lips.

She had an idea.

A dangerous idea, but an idea.

Slowly, cautiously, Usagi reached out that shade of herself, to that wicked doppelganger that danced at the edges of her awareness. The gleeful entity responded with a viciousness, seizing at the opening, trying to assert herself. It wanted power, it wanted control, and it wanted it _now_.

"No," Usagi gasped the denial, shaking her head. "You don't exist," she bit out through grit teeth. "I won't let you take over!" She gripped her head between her hands, fingernails digging into soft scalp. She grappled with her unwanted invader, so a part of her and yet so not. Eventually, they settled into a tense stalemate. Usagi maintained a precarious hold on her own senses and her own body, but she was so very, very aware of her inner shadow. Aware, enough, that she had the faintest inclination to go south when she thought of wanting to get out.

It wasn't exactly a detailed mental map, but it was something.

______________

"You sure about this?" Venus looked dubiously at the flickering, multi-colored portal that hovered two-dimensionally in the center of the Control Room floor. Beside her, Mercury was frowning and tapping away furiously at her little compact computer. If the girl's fingers didn't start bleeding soon, Venus would begin to worry about her vascular system.

"No, but we don't have much of a choice," Luna responded, looking solemnly at the big glass screen suspended above the main console unit. The image portrayed there was a grim one that made Venus's heart seize as coldly as the massive icicles and snowdrifts that, in the image, consumed the cityscape. As far as they knew, the entire eastern hemisphere was engulfed in ice, the radius spreading rapidly. On the other side of the globe, people were panicking as they desperately tried to prepare for the icy onslaught that was unexplained. For all intents and purposes, the world was in shreds, either frozen in place or reduced to panic and mayhem. Absolutely perfect for an invasion.

Had they done this? Had they somehow mishandled that day in the warehouse so badly, it allowed Endymion to open that portal, to let in this massive attack? Was there something they could have done? Acted faster? Been smarter? Found the Princess sooner? The last was obvious, seeing as their 'glorious' Princess had been under their noses the whole time. Part of Venus understood the need for the deception, and yet the rest of her loathed herself, feeling her role as the decoy somehow contributed to events decaying as they had... Maybe, if she'd called off the charade sooner, if the true Serenity had come into her own sooner, if...if...if...

She shook off her doubts. The world didn't need a weak, unsure Venusian Senshi at the moment.

"If that's where Jupiter and Mars went, that's where we'll go," Venus said, conviction lending her voice a determination she didn't truly feel. Beside her, Mercury snapped her computer shut and nodded.

"I'm not getting any readings at all," she said. "It's as if..wherever we're going...doesn't really exist."

Venus blinked. "But...it does exist, right?"

"There's no such thing as a portal that leads to nowhere," Mercury replied, still frowning. She glanced to Venus, then back to the portal. "Theoretically."

"Lovely," the blonde leader murmured. Then, drawing herself up, "Let's go." She followed her own words, pulling her power tight around her, ready to use, Golden Lasso ready in hand and humming with energy as she dived on through the crackling portal. Mercury followed right behind her, an icy mist forming around her hands in a bubbling aura.

As soon as she felt herself falling, she noted something was off- specifically, the rate at which she was falling. She wasn't so much plummeting, so much as she was...floating downward. She blinked, glancing behind her- Mercury, too, was descending in a slow-motion fall. But that wasn't what she fixated on.

"Oh my God..." The phrase was out before she could withhold the exclamation. Seeing Venus's shock, her own eyes widening in alarm, Mercury glanced behind her and gave a squeak of her own.

"Goodness!"

Venus stumbled as her feet touched down in the soft, grey powder that made up most of the surrounding landscape, gaze still fixed on the luminescent globe suspended above them.

"Pictures certainly don't do it justice," Mercury breathed as she landed, far more gracefully, beside Venus. They stood for a moment, jaws perhaps lowered a bit more than was appealing, as they beheld the Earth.

After a moment, Mercury noted something else- the fact that the atmosphere between them and the Earth was hazy, and had a faint purple glow to it. She blinked, realization dawning, as she pinched an earlobe to summon her visor. Eye movement conveyed her commands to the blue screen suddenly projected over her face, directing what she wanted analyzed. When the readouts blinked in front of her, she grinned and snapped her fingers.

"Well, that certainly makes sense," she mused out loud, hardly noting Venus was looking at her oddly- she was too busy ensuring her sensors took in proper amounts of data. She'd love to be able to recreate a shield that gave off absolutely no evidence to its presence.

"What? What is it?" Venus's demand broke into her scholar's reverie, and she flushed. They had an urgent mission, after all.

"The reason it seemed there was nothing here was that this shield," she motioned to the purple dome that encompassed them, as far as the eye could see. "Was blocking my readings, utterly and thoroughly. The interesting part is, that my sensors didn't pick up the fact that there even was a shield. Even the tiniest of barriers should have given off some sort of energy reading- bare bones minimum, it should have bounced my signals back at me. This did none of that. It's truly as if it's not there...and yet it is."

"Cool." The statement, while accurate as far as Mercury was concerned, so underplayed the sheer magnitude of the discovery, that all Mercury could do was sigh and restrain her inner geek. She pinched her earring again, and the visor vanished, despite the fact that the computer was still absorbing data at an alarming rate. She hoped her buffers and memory had enough room...

"Venus! Mercury!"

All thoughts of portals and shields and computers vanished from the minds of both Senshi as they turned sharply, half in hope, half in readiness for a fight, towards where their names had been shouted from. It took only a moment for the two of them to register the two forms running towards them, short skirts rippling, long legs leaping in slow, almost comical runs.

Relief flooded Venus's system. She'd anticipated a long, arduous search- likely a fight or two. Possibly finding nothing. This was beyond her best hopes.

"Mars, Jupiter!" Mercury cried, starting her own moon-run towards their companions. Venus followed, not sure if the odd sensation of so little gravity was fun or unnerving. It was certainly odd, the fact that they were moving so slow and yet gaining ground so quickly- it took half the effort to leap twice as far.

The quartet met halfway, embracing with sighs and smiles of relief.

"We figured it was only a matter of time before you guys came," Jupiter said, smiling with bright confidence. Venus wondered if that confidence had been there _before_ they'd shown up.

"I was worried when none of my perception powers could reach past the barrier," Mars confessed. "I even tried Scrying into my own fire, and got nothing beside Jupiter. Not even the sense that there's an entire planet above me." The fact that anything, even an obviously superior shield, had managed to stifle her abilities was blatantly rubbing the Senshi of Fire the wrong way.

"You realize you two are gigantic idiots, right?" Venus blurted. "Jumping into a portal like that?"

Mars bristled. "We were trying to follow the Princess!"

"Though we haven't found her," Jupiter bit out, arms crossed.

"The portal shifted, just after Endymion went through, right before you two went in," Mercury explained. "She's not here- she's somewhere on Earth, somewhere on the northern ice cap."

"You know where she is and you came and got us first?" Jupiter's arms uncrossed, fists clenched. Lightning crackled around her knuckles.

Venus looked at her with a level gaze, explaining slowly, "She's in the heart of the Dark Kingdom, Jupiter. Even with all four of us, it won't be easy getting in there. Besides...there's a more urgent situation."

"What's more urgent that rescuing Usagi?" Mars demanded.

Without a word, Mercury raised her newly summoned data computer, flipped open and displaying a panning view of the Tokyo skyline. She turned it towards the incensed Senshi.

Jupiter's hostility dropped away, and Mars' own heat faded in a blink. "Oh, shit..." the darker haired girl breathed.

"Yeah," Venus snorted. "'Oh, shit' is right."

_____________

Exhaustion made her vision swim and her breath come in short, shallow gasps. She clung to the damp, rough walls of the cavernous hall. Externally, she hardly moved- she was still, and silent but for the occasional moan. Internally, she battled against her inner interloper for control over her very soul,

"Go...away..." She wheezed. She didn't need the shade of herself anymore- she'd found what she needed. Ahead of her, resting on a pedestal of darkest, glossy stone, was a silvery orb contained in an obsidian cage. She had no idea what it was, really- except that it was her way out. Somehow.

But as soon as she'd realized she was done invoking her inner shadow for directions, the malignant presence had attacked, shrieking and piercing her heart with barbs of darkness and hate.

Usagi whimpered, collapsing against the wall, one hand grasping folds of the cloak, over her heart, her other hand bracing herself as she pushed away, and half walked-half stumbled to a pillar flanking the chamber entrance. Her vision swam, blurred, then snapped into focus. The battle waged on, with Usagi keeping ahold of her sense of self by her proverbial fingernails. Her tainted counterpart lashed and thrashed and grappled for what it could wrest from Usagi's tenuous hold. With every step she took closer to her escape, the more the demon fought. Usagi could only guess at what that meant- only hope that, once she got out of this place, it would dissipate, perhaps disappear- certainly fade to the point where it would hardly be a threat anymore.

"Serenity!" The shout jolted her halfway out of her inner battle, enough so that her shadow-self seized a large portion of control from Usagi's grasp. She gasped, falling forward and barely catching herself, crashing to one knee on the hard onyx tiles. She blinked down at the reflection peering up at her from the glossy tiles- it wasn't her! The face snarling up at her was her face in features only- same nose, mouth, same heart shaped visage. But the hair that spilled down over her shoulders was reflected up at her as sheerest black, blending into the black stone flooring. The eyes glinted ruby on black, the wine-red lips pulled back in a snarl that allowed sharp ivory fangs to bite into the full, lower lip. No enveloping cloak maintaining modesty- pale, pert breasts set above taut, flat belly. The image captured her attention for only a moment, as the echo of her shouted name still reverberated in the massive chamber.

She glanced over her shoulder, silver-gold hair falling forward around her face. The figure bolting down the long, gaping corridor behind her was unmistakable, even if she'd only ever glimpsed that bare chest once. A part of her marveled that he'd even bothered with pants, once he'd woken to find her gone.

Urgency renewed, Usagi pushed herself up on wobbling feet, lurching towards the pedestal. Beneath her, her demonic reflection clawed at the floor from underneath, trapped within the onyx's glossy surface. With a final burst of strength, she fell towards it, catching herself on its edge and hissing as the impact bruised her ribcage. In her mind, the demon shrieked and raged, tugging with all its might on every single cord it had wrapped around Usagi's mind and soul. She grit her teeth, and held firm against the massive pull on her sanity. With one shaking hand, she reached for the black cage holding the floating silver globe.

"Serenity! I command you to stop!" He was furious. The amount of sheer rage that bombarded her senses was nearly enough to overwhelm her, and it was almost over then and there, but for the sake of a single finger barely brushing the surface of the silver orb.

Strength, sweet and pure, flooded up her arm to her shoulder, giving her what she needed to grip the cage, and dash it to the floor. The cage shattered, the orb exploded, filling the chamber with brilliant white light. At its very center, Usagi sensed more than she saw, her freedom. Hard hands brushed against her, gripping her- she slipped out of the cloak, out of Endymion's grasp, and fell into the heart of silver with a sigh.

_________________

"The whole planet?" Jupiter peered up at the Earth. Below the clouds, the outline of the America's was visible, still mostly brown and green. Around the edges of the globe's horizon, though, solid white was rapidly encroaching.

"Soon, yes, the whole planet will be enveloped in ice. Japan, Europe, Asia- they're all already swallowed up." Mercury wasn't looking at the planet, but at her computer, tapping away. "The more the ice swallows, the faster it spreads. Whatever spell the Dark Kingdom used, it's feeding itself from what it encompasses."

"...The people?"

"Dead, most of them. Hypothermia, suffocation, drained by the spell, any one of those things would kill a normal person. All three?" Venus's words were clipped, near emotionless. Her family was in Europe. Mercury's and Mars' in Japan. Perhaps Jupiter was the luckiest, with no family to lose.

There had to be a way to undo it.

There was always a way.

"That's odd." Mercury's voice and a beeping from her computer broke the severe silence that had enveloped them. All three looked away from the Earth and to their resident genius.

"What is it?" Mars moved as if to peer over her comrade's shoulders. Mercury's fingers were flying.

"An energy signal, from the northern icecap- right where we deduced the Dark Kingdom's signal is strongest-"

As she spoke, there was a spike of bright white light that burst, suddenly, above the cloud bank hovering over the north pole. It was brief, and small, but brilliantly bright.

"What in the world-" Venus took a step forward, staring at the spot where the beam had been.

"An attack?" Mars clenched a fist, red heat rising from between her fingers.

"No," Mercury replied. "That energy spike wasn't Dark Kingdom energy-"

Any further explanation she had was cut off, as a twin lancing beam exploded a kilometer away, towards the center of the purple dome, piercing up and through the flickering shield. For a brief moment the barrier fluctuated, fading altogether for a handful of seconds, before flickering back.

The four Senshi stared, unmoving, at one another for a half second, then sped off towards it's origin. Mercury's computer was beeping wildly, and she gave a gasp as she read what it told her.

"What is it? Mercury, what are we going into?" Venus demanded, frustrated at how slow their leaps were. In truth they were advancing quickly- but it didn't at all feel like it.

Mercury shook her head.

"Ami, we need to know what we're facing!" She snapped. Mercury shook her head again.

"It's not dangerous." And that was all she would say. She didn't want to get their hopes up. It simply couldn't be this easy.

_______________________

Karin blinked. Leaned back from the eyepiece. Blinked again, looked up with her unaided eyes. Blinked. Rubbed her eyes. Put her face back down to the telescope. The perfect circle encompassing a portion of the sky came into sharp focus, the image held within perfectly unmistakable.

But it was impossible.

She had to be imagining it. Without looking away, afraid the vision would fade, she reached blindly with one hand for her cellphone-

Too late.

A flicker of lavender across the telescope's line of sight, and then nothing but puckered grey dust and a scattering of silvery stones and blackened boulders.

But...it had been there. She was certain of it.

A glorious city, a crumbled cityscape... And a silver palace, in ruins, right beside a version of Mare Serenatis that was an actual sea.

Karin straightened up from the telescope, staring up at the Moon with unaided eyes. Why did she have the feeling she was suddenly privy to a desperately precious secret? Moreover, why was she resisting the powerful urge to sob and cry, as if remembering something that had been lost?

Shaking herself, Karin turned and went back inside- a good dose of rum and coke was calling to her.

____________________

Safety- safety and nostalgia. Ruined, crumbled, a mere echo of what it once had been, and this place still somehow inspired a powerful wave of deja vu. Usagi looked around at the broken pillars, the cracked remnants of huge white tiles, crumbling walls and shattered fountains. This place had been beautiful once- she knew it just by looking around, and from the whisper of her own memories. Even as she sat, naked and staring around her, ghosts of her past flitted across her field of vision. A girl, silver-haired and silk-clad, running down the pathway now marked only by the faintest traces of half-buried flagstones. Behind her, a quarter of women, long-legged and bearing the colors of their Planets, running with only partial intention of actually catching her. Bubbling laughter, faint and airy, teased her ears. Tears threatened to overflow. They'd been so happy, here.

Her demon was suppressed. Drained, weak, barely more than a whisper of a presence, it was still there. It gave one final, promising hiss in the back of her mind, then succumbed to slumber. Usagi breathed a sigh that was half relief, half despair. She'd hoped it's existence had been dependant on her proximity to the Dark Kingdom. Now, it seemed, it would stay with her -albeit in a weakened state- regardless of where she was. The Moon was certainly as far away from the Dark Kingdom as she could reasonably get!

The Moon... Part of her reeled. Another part, the part that remembered power, royal obligations, and bigger stakes than one planet barely flinched. This was home, after all. It had been then, it still was now in a nostalgic way, and would forever be. It was where Serenity had lived, and died.

She pushed herself to shaky feet, brushing aside the temptation to try to cover herself. It was useless, and there was no one to see her here, anyway. Besides, she had more pressing issues. Like how to get back to Earth, and her friends... Or even, how the hell she was breathing when she wasn't transformed. They'd figured out long ago that as Senshi, they could survive extreme environments far better than any human, including limited atmospheres and oxygen. But she wasn't transformed-

A faint breeze brushed Usagi's hair forward over her shoulders, sending the silky streamers fluttering and floating in the lesser gravity. She blinked. The locks were purest silver.

Well, perhaps not transformed, but she certainly wasn't human at the moment, either.

Faintly, a part of her wondered at how, exactly, her body could shift back and forth between species and she not feel a thing. A question for Ami, she was sure.

She brought her hands to cup above her heart, closing her eyes and delving inward. Without pause the Crystal flickered into existence between her curved palms, emitting a soft, warm white glow. Usagi smiled down at it with mixed affection and distaste. So much strife, over something so little...

Her attention was caught by something far to her right. She blinked at it, then moved to approach the large stone disk nestled in a pile of grey dirt, tilted at a slight angle. The pattern carved into it was unlike anything Usagi had ever seen. Marginally resembling an open bloom, the linework was both beautiful and dizzying. It had begun glowing, pulsing softly in sync with the Crystal.

"_Usagi_!" How, exactly, the word reached her with such force on her eardrums, given the fact that there was very little in the way of oxygen to carry such volume, Usagi wasn't exactly sure, and didn't exactly care once she saw who had shouted!

Her grip on the Crystal faltered, and the glow vanished as the little bauble disappeared back inside her chest. Not caring about her nude state, Usagi leaped up and darted towards the four Senshi currently leaping their way in almost comical slow motion towards her. When at last they met, it was amid tears and exclamations of relief.

"How did you get here?" Mercury was the last to release her, asking her question through tearful sniffles. Usagi wiped her own watering eyes, ignoring the discomfort her nudity was beginning to push to the forefront of her mind. She crossed her arms over her chest.

"N-not sure...there was this globe, all silvery... And I touched it, and I was here." She knew how it sounded, knew she should know more. Any way in or out of the Dark Kingdom could only help them.

"What were you looking at?" Mars looked past Usagi. She turned to look where her raven-haired Senshi was looking, and saw that the tilted disk of stone was still pulsing, humming almost now that she was paying attention.

"It started doing that when I checked to see that I could use the Crystal again." And now, she could feel the Crystal responding to the disk, even as it nestled somewhere inside here. She pressed a hand to her heart, and moved towards the disk. Her Senshi followed, flanking her to avoid getting tangled in the floating lengths of silver hair. She went to the disk, kneeling down on one knee, and pulling out the Crystal, drawing on it harder than she had before. As if the very ruins themselves were responding, every shard or crumbled piece of pearly stone began to glow along with the disk. Usagi herself began to eminate a faint light, as if lit from within. The glow around her intensified, solidified, and by the time a gown of softest, lightest silk settled around her, there was an sheer image floating above the disk.

She was small, the image of the woman that hovered and flickered over the center of the disk, barely as tall as Usagi's hand was long. Her hair was pulled up into a mirror of Usagi's own, faint lavender kissing the shadows of her white locks. She was impossibly slender, and in life would have been tall and graceful. Wings fluttered out behind her, sheerest gossamer that was barely visible. She looked young, and yet the mantle of the ages was settled around her like a well-worn cloak, even in only this echo of her image. And she was looking up at Usagi- no, she was looking at Serenity with the deepest, proudest love. Serenity's breath hitched her throat, as behind her the four Senshi slowly dropped to their knees.

And she choked out, "Mother..."

______

To Be Continued.

_____

Sorry this was so long in coming. I decided to take my last break before graduating college and actually...well, take a break. Two weeks of lounging, sleeping, and eating an entire double chocolate cherry cake by myself (can't decide whether or not to love or hate my fiance for getting it for me...the day I dedicate myself to my wedding diet, no less...) and my muse is back on track.

And yes, Karin is a real person, a friend of mine studying Astronomy. Thanks for waiting, all!

-Amber


End file.
